Thursday 10 October 2019

After 60 Years of the NCAA The Ngorongoro Chief Conservator Announces a Plan to Evict the Maasai Again



While fear and silence continued in Loliondo where government officials will break any law to intimidate anyone who could speak up against so-called “investors” that threaten land rights, things were calming down since there hadn’t been any illegal arrests since January, there weren’t any rangers harassing herders, OBC’s director had for unknown reasons been charged with economic crimes, the president had made a statement on not being happy about evictions of pastoralists and cultivators all over the country, and nothing more was being heard about a threat of Loliondo being placed under the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA). Then, towards the later part of September, news broke that the Ngorongoro chief conservator, Freddy Manongi, and the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Hamisi Kigwangalla, had presented a plan to not only alienate from the villages the 1,500 km2 Osero (bushland) of important dry season land, but to at the same time evict people and cattle from almost the whole of Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), from the Lake Natron basin and escarpment, and elsewhere, and to restrict land use in other areas. If implemented, such a plan would mean the end of pastoralism in Ngorongoro district, and the end of Maasai culture and lives. The news was met with sadness, confusion, and despair over useless leaders that didn’t immediately act against such an announced atrocity.

As usual, this blog post has many unanswered questions.

In this blog post:
A terrible announcement, an article, and Manongi’s report
Core Conservation Zone –
Core Conservation Sub-Zone
Transition Zone
Community Development Zone-
Confusion about game controlled areas
Kigwangalla at the NCAA HQ
Who’s responsible? UNESCO and others?
Slow reactions and a not that strong statement by the Pastoral Council
Mzee telling it as it is