Protection and Preservation of Wildlife Game Reserves and National Parks in South Sudan

By Ayuen Dot Mangar, Sydney, Australia

Saturday, June 05, 2021 (PW) — South Sudan is a country located in north-eastern Africa that gained its independence in 2011 from Sudan. South Sudan was a former southern region of Sudan. South Sudan is border on the south by Kenya, Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), on the north by Sudan, on the east by Ethiopia and on the west by the Central African Republic. Sudan is a home of indigenous African ethnic groups or black Africans and minority Arabs origin who immigrated to Sudan during the barter trade or around 13 century.

South Sudan fought a protracted war of two phases with Sudan. Phase I was the Anya Nya I war which started in 1955-1972. After the peace agreement signed was dishonoured, the second phase war fought by SPLA/SPLM broke out in 1983-2005. A referendum that was signed in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) to allow South Sudanese to vote either in support of UNITY of Sudan or SEPARATION of Southern region from Sudan to make it the newest country in the world has taken place in 2011 as scheduled.

South Sudanese overwhelmingly voted for a separation that created a new nation in the world map known as South Sudan. South Sudan has a population of 10.98 million people according to 2018 census obtained by the World Bank. South Sudan history is rich and too long but I will leave the history short as a glimpse to the readers who may not be aware of a country known as SOUTH SUDAN. 

However, the interest of this author is the management of wildlife in the country. Wildlife is undomesticated native fauna and flora or native wild animals and plants in layman term. Generally, wildlife is threats by loss of habitats, climate changes, pesticides and toxic chemicals, natural calamities, hunting, over-exploitation, pollution and accidental deaths.

In addition to these threats, South Sudan wildlife conservation is affected by long wars fought for many decades between former Southern region of Sudan and Sudan and South Sudan herself. The protracted or prolong wars and acute poverty planted by wars and other insecurities in South Sudan have placed its wildlife conservation in a precarious state.

There is also little understanding of the importance of wildlife, both governments at various levels and local communities. South Sudan owned 70% of north-eastern Africa wildlife before the world longest civil wars ravaged wildlife population. These wars have created mass emigration of wildlife to the neighbouring countries and many are already have been poached by both soldiers and civilians as a mean of survivals.

When peace returned in the country in 2005, the wildlife resilient were achieved after little protection and conservation were achieved before a third baseless war fought by South Sudanese themselves erupted in 2013 as a result of power struggle. Emigration and rampant illegal poaching of wildlife were resumed and wildlife protection and conservation effort being provided by international conservation organizations in the country have been reduced. Fauna &Flora International and Wildlife Conservation Society are facing challenges of lack of roads, wars, poaching and identification of wildlife species and corridors. 

Local communities across South Sudan valued wildlife as a source of foods and trade. Local communities see wild animals as a mean of survival. Continuous random settlement and development in remote communities have led to degradation, fragmentation and destruction of natural habitats or environment which wildlife call home. Local communities see habitats as a source of getting woods for development of housing, firewood and charcoals for cooking and trading.

Destruction of habitats resulted in the extinction of many species that are helpful to the process of ecosystem development. An ecosystem is comprised of many species which are interconnected to survive. Changed in the species composition in the habitats of given environments affect food chains, dispersal and fertilisation distributions. Wildlife in South Sudan is free-roaming animals that walk thousands of miles searching for foods, water and covering based on seasons throughout the year.

These migration corridors are disrupted by human settlement which subjected wildlife to illegal poaching if they meet villages in these corridors. Wildlife officers are all well trained as army officers with little knowledge of wildlife protection and conservation. Wildlife officers are all station in the urban towns and rural towns instead of deploying them in places where wildlife call home and migration routes to provide proper protection and disrupting of human settlement in the migration corridors.

You don’t see any sign of wildlife roaming vicinity of wildlife officers’ stations which indicated that officers are likely to be part of poachers. If you drive across villages, you can see people by the roads selling meats that they get from wildlife and no punishment being issue to the perpetrators. You can also see them selling ivory and skins that are indication or present of the killing of wildlife.

Traditional fire management is also another threat to legless and slow-moving animals and wildlife habitats. Burning of forests like bushlands is catastrophic to many species that are endemic to South Sudan. Oil drilling in some parts of the country is polluting the environment and threatening habitats and wildlife because there were no holistic assessments put in place before the commencement of exploration.

Our rivers and lakes become polluted that fish and other aquatic life are disappearing. For the case of South Sudan, some species, both animals and plants are not classified yet to determine their endangered or threatened status due to limited knowledge and accessibility.  

Importance of habitats

Different species of plants formed various communities known as habitats. These habitats occur both in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Habitats are the natural places where plants, animals and other organisms live and interact with one another. All animals of any kind and humans need food, water, shelter, air, medicines and space to survive. Plants produce oxygen that humans and animals required to breathe.

Ecological communities provide humans with food to live and attract rain to grow food. Habitats provide animals with a source of food for survival and successful reproduction and various places to live. Trees prevent soil erosion caused by wildlife and domestic animals movements and human activities. Protection, conservation and preservation of biodiversity are vital for the ecological benefit, educational benefit, recreational benefits and economic benefit.  

Importance of wildlife

Wildlife has ecological, economic, political and cultural importance. Wildlife importance is always directly or indirectly recognised at the community-based, industries-based and those organizations or departments that are responsible for the management of natural resources. Wildlife is playing significant roles in the ecological and biological functioning of the biosphere among plants, animals and microorganisms.

The biological processes roles of wildlife are nutrient cycling, pollination, germination, seed dispersal, soil generation, predation, habitat maintenance, waste breakdown and pest control. Ecological processes are vital for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and other important factors to human. The ecological vital of wildlife is to help in the process of maintaining ecological balancing of an ecosystem through regulation of the population of different species, food-chains and energy passage among species and circulation of inorganic nutrients between biotic and abiotic environments.

Apex carnivores help in reducing the number of herbivores that may over-populate the forests and destroying vegetation. Humans are on the top of the food chain to suppress the number of apex carnivores to keep the cycle balance. Wildlife attracts tourists which are significant to local communities and governments in term of economic, social and political benefits. Wildlife economic importance is to contribute billions of shillings to our neighbouring countries and South Sudan is not attracting any international tourist to earn billions of pounds.

Tourists pay money to national parks and zoo managements to support the provision of conservation. A tourist spends money in local restaurants, hotels and accommodations where there are wildlife attractions which are significant for the local and national economies. Tourism brings people from different communities and countries to interact with locals that are good for social and political benefits because people who usually intermingle become friendly. Wildlife has scientific value as it helps scientists to use some plants as medicines using animals as a mean of studies.  

Recommendations

When you protect and preserve wildlife, you also have protected the entire environment which is good for humans, plants and animals to live in a sustainable healthy nation. Wildlife management is not merely a government role but everyone role. If our people at grass root or across local communities understand the importance of wildlife then the wildlife management will not be preached to the citizens again to protect and preserve them.

Rolling out a nationwide fauna and flora educational program will be an important milestone for wildlife protection and conservation. Providing awareness of the importance of the wildlife to the local communities within South Sudan is a required ad hoc. Habitats can only be protected and preserved if government together with conservation groups put a limit to unsustainable deforestation, human settlement, construction of buildings and roads.

Food production is important for human survival but agricultural lands must be limited and conscious of heritage treasures. Mapping and extraction of natural resources must conform to and respect both fauna and flora present in the country. Mapping of national parks and territorial corridors where wildlife is occurring. Monitoring and regulating the population of identified existing different species in the country.

Close monitoring of wildlife poaching, illegal mining, deforestation and human settlements in the wildlife areas across the country. Implement construction of bridges, passages, forest belts and hedges in wildlife corridors to allow smooth and safe passage of wildlife during food and water hunting. Transforming wildlife officers into rangers or keepers and train them with basic principles of conservation skills and deploying them in areas where wildlife is occurring.

Introduce strong law that protects wildlife, habitats and punishing notorious law violators. Keep at a minimum the uses of traditional land management to protect species that are vulnerable to these practices.

The author, Ayuen Dot Mangar, is a master holder in Wildlife Management from Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia and bachelor holder in Tourism Management from Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia. The author can be reached by email: dotawuou@yahoo.com.au

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