In Namibia, Allan Cilliers has secured a five-year hunting tender for the Kwando hunting concession, located in Bwabwata National Park, formerly known as Caprivi Strip Game Park. You'll recall that Cilliers had been hunting the East Kavango concession in partnership with another company. The East Kavango was one of those coveted concessions auctioned off by the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism. (See Article ID 2318.) "I am not at all involved in East Kavango anymore," Cilliers reports, "but rather putting all my efforts into the Bwabwata National Park (Bwabwata east) hunting concession." In a note to The Hunting Report, Cilliers describes the concession this way: "With the assistance of NGOs such as World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation (IRDNC), the Kyaramacan Association was formed some years back, by the few bushmen allowed to reside in the National Park. The main objective of the Kyaramacan Association has been to assist the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) with the management of the park and its wildlife resources, creation of employment, and development of the residents in the Park. The association has its own game guard system, which successfully conducts game censuses and anti-poaching patrols. Because of these successful and dedicated efforts, sustainable utilization of wildlife in the park has been allowed.
"There was a brief period in 2006/07 (14 months) when I obtained the first tender for this hunting concession. At the time, income generated through hunting was allocated to this association and into the game trust fund. Funds from the game trust fund are used for various projects like game translocations to conservancies, black rhino conservation, repair of damages to the property and installations of local inhabitants caused by wildlife, etc. Additionally, I was involved in funding social development programs, such as training, education and development of the infrastructure. The proceeds generated from selective trophy hunting in Bwabwata proved to be a great success, and this encouraged MET to put this area on tender again for five years to benefit the association, the people and the game trust fund.
"I worked........(continued)
