Posted on March, 03 2015

Tanzania is a country rich in forests and wildlife. While it is famous for the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro crater in the North, there is an expanse of forests – miombo woodlands to be precise – in the south of the country lesser known to the outside world. The Ruvuma River forms the border between Tanzania and Mozambique and its watershed covers a very large landscape.  This trans boundary region is considered to be one of the few remnant wilderness areas in Africa and home to the second largest elephant population on the continent too. But the region is at a turning point.

The “Ruvuma Landscape”, as WWF sees it, covers 280,000km2. It is one of the fastest growing regions in East Africa due to the recent discovery of large deposits of oil, gas and other minerals. Both the Mozambique and Tanzanian governments are planning and building major infrastructure, for the extractives industry in particular. Illegal logging, artisanal mining and poaching are already problems in the area. There are risks and opportunities with the new developments. WWF offices in the region, in particular WWF staff Geofrey Mwanjela and Isaac Mulugu, are closely engaged in the planning process and social and environmental impact assessments to increase the chances of these investments driving sustainable development that support local communities.

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