KAZA

Sustainable development in the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area

Within Southern Africa, the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA; http://www.kavangozambezi.org/en/) hosts some of the richest and most biodiverse forests in the world. KAZA was established in 2006, with a vision “to establish a world-class transfrontier conservation and tourism destination area in the Okavango and Zambezi River Basin regions of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, within the context of sustainable development.” The KAZA TFCA spans an area of 519, 912km²; includes 36 formally proclaimed national parks, game reserves, forest reserves, and game/wildlife management areas; and, vast areas outside of protected areas. In recent years, the globally significant natural resources in the KAZA landscape have been targeted for illegal poaching, harvest, and trafficking.

The USFS Office of International Programs is leading the coordination of several projects focusing on KAZA, including the development of a Rapid reference timber permit guide in the form of a mobile app, for use by the interdisciplinary law enforcement community, including NGOs. The guide will include both within-country and international permits for the five KAZA member states (Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe), as well as covering the full range of harvest, phytosanitary, transport, export, and CITES permits.