Posted on August, 09 2003

Lusaka, Zambia – WWF assisted in a wildlife translocation of 190 impala and 34 zebra from Zambia's Mosi-ou-Tunya National Park to the Mwanachingwala Conservation Area (MCA) in Mazabuka as part of the rehabilitation and conservation management of the country's 55,000-ha Kafue wetlands. The MCA, which is part of the Kafue Flats, has made tremendous strides in the past few months with partners Chief Mwanachingwala of the Mwanachingwala chiefdom, Zambia Sugar, Nanga Farm, Ceres Farm, Zambezi Ranching and Cropping, Pinkney and Bignell Farm, Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA), and the WWF Partners for Wetlands programme, securing 224 wild animals for the MCA at a reduced cost of about US$45,000. The partnership began in 2001, when a memorandum of understanding was signed with WWF to establish the MCA to operate as a non-profit company (MCA Limited). Since then, a fence has been constructed to the south to create a sanctuary for wildlife, with the river in the north forming the northern boundary, and local members of the community have volunteered to work as scouts and have been trained to check poaching activities in the MCA. The partners are eager to see the conservancy completed and established as a tourist destination, generating income for the local community. The Kafue Flats are home to magnificent wildlife such as zebra, Kafue lechwe, buffalo, hippo, impala, bushbuck, roan, oribi, reedbuck, Sitatunga, and wildebeest. The Kafue Flats are also home to over 470 species of birds including the endangered wattled crane. For further information: Kwali Mfuni Communications Manager, WWF Partners for Wetlands programme (Kafue Flats) Tel.: +260 1 255598 E-mail: kwali@zamtel.zm