the role of tourism in natural resource management in the okavango ...

Furthermore, the NCS has failed to develop a legal framework by which it can
coordinate the five environmental challenges it was established to address. Natural
resource management is, therefore, the responsibility of the various government
departments and ministries. This sectorial nature of land use policies causes conflict
in the Okavango Delta, which threaten the sustainable management of wildlife in the
area. For example, the Tawana Land Board is responsible for the allocation of
agricultural land in the Okavango Delta, while the Ministry of Agriculture provides
seeds and agricultural demonstrations to farmers, free livestock to Basarwa (San)
farmers, and free veterinary assistance and vaccination of animals. There is very
little or no co-ordination between these two government departments, even though
they are both responsible for shaping agricultural production in the Okavango Delta.
All these agricultural measures are implemented without consideration for wildlife
conservation, due to the lack of co-ordination between agriculture and wildlife in
Botswana (Mbaiwa, 1999).
Despite the importance of the role of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) in
sustainable development, the NCS in all its 15 years of existence, has just recently
finished formulating draft EIA legislation, which has not yet been passed in
parliament. While EIAs have been carried out voluntarily in Botswana, there is no
legal policy or act which makes it mandatory for EIAs to be carried out prior to any
development initiatives. This has resulted in the possibility of seriously destructive
projects, such as the erection of veterinary fences throughout the Ngamiland District,
being carried out, as there is very little accountability for environmental degradation
in Botswana. The erection of the veterinary fences in Botswana, at the expense of
the country's wildlife, is a further example of the lack of integration between livestock
production and wildlife management (Mbaiwa, 1999).
The Department of Wildlife and National Park's wildlife utilization and management
policies also lack provisions for the integration of wildlife management with other
sectors and government departments. Although the Wildlife Conservation and
National Parks Act of 1992 has consolidated the laws relating to wildlife conservation
and management in Botswana, it has not addressed the question of how wildlife
utilisation and management must relate to other sectors of the economy. The Act
does not require EIAs to be conducted prior to the implementation of economic
activities in National Parks, Game Reserves, Wildlife Management Areas and
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