Africa-Press – Angola. The Angolan Executive wants to transform the Okavango region into a conservation area par excellence and a world-renowned tourist destination, said Rui Lisboa yesterday, the chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Agency for the Management of the Okavango Region (ANAGERO).
Speaking at the signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding between Anagero and the US non-governmental organization The Nature Conservation (TNC), he acknowledged that this goal is still far away.
He referred that the initiative aims to implement projects for the conservation of the natural heritage of the Okavango and local communities, adding that it is being coordinated by Anagero, which is responsible for coordinating the activities of NGOs operating in the region, so that they are in line with the vision of the Angolan Executive, in conservation and development, in order to ensure that the resources mobilized abroad are fully applied.
Rui Lisboa highlighted the country’s environmental potential, considering that the Okavango represents the main source of water that feeds the main hydroelectric basins in southern Africa. For this reason, he underlined, it is the largest wildlife sanctuary, where the emblematic species of the world’s fauna, which most attract tourists, pontificate. “It is also a great cultural and historical heritage of our country,” he said.
On this project, he explained that a multisectoral commission was created to analyze the inventory of faunal resources in the region and, among other tasks, it will have the mission of identifying priority infrastructures to make the entire implementation process viable, with the support of international organizations. interested in cooperating with the Government of Angola, in the protection and sustainable development of the region, whose ecological importance transcends the country.
Anagero is the executive body, created by Presidential Decree n°279/19, of 11 September. Its main objective is to promote, attract and facilitate private investments that contribute to the integrated management of the Angolan region of Cubango/Okavango, with a view to rational use and sustainable development, taking into account the principles of protection and preservation of social values, existing economic, cultural, scientific and environmental issues.
Its vision is to develop the Okavango in a sustainable way and improve the living conditions of the communities, in addition to taking advantage of the tourist and environmental potential that the region has, based on the use of natural resources, taking into account the principles of rational use.
The agency is responsible for articulating with national, regional and local institutions in order to guarantee the operationalization of sustainable investments and projects, and to create a platform for the coordination of all initiatives for the protection and sustainable development of the region, mobilizing and ensure the proper use of funds raised.
The geographic scope of Anagero comprises the Angolan region of the Cubango-Okavango Basin, which involves 6 provinces of Angola: Huambo, Bié, Huíla, Cunene, Moxico and Cuando Cubango. The Agency will promote the region’s potential and opportunities and facilitate the implementation of private investments, ensuring that these investments respect good practices in the sustainable use of available resources.
international partnership
Founded over seventy years ago, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) works in over seventy countries, including nine in Africa. TNC has built a strong record of being a valued partner to Governments as well as the public and private sectors.
Colin Apse, director of TNC, said that the purpose of this partnership is to work to improve people’s lives and not just protect nature. “The TNC is the best-resourced conservation organization, which means we can commit to working long-term, with government agencies in partnership with the private sector. This means we can move forward with national development goals as well as as with business results. Our fundamental approach at The Nature Conservation is to work with others, rather than trying to do things alone,” he said.
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