Staff Reporter
THE Legacy Landscapes Fund (LLF) from Germany has announced the signing of a grant agreement to provide significant funding to the conservation area Skeleton Coast-Etosha bridge in North-Western Namibia. The agreement commits USD one million annually to the region, which consists of multiple protected areas, communal conservancies, and their buffer zones, for at least 50 years. This long-term funding will contribute to the effective management of the Namibian conservation hotspot, bolstering much-needed climate resilience efforts, boosting local livelihoods, and protecting vulnerable wildlife species.
The grant will be implemented by LLF’s trusted partners World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Namibia’s own Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation (IRDNC) in support of the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism (MEFT). WWF and IRDNC will work closely with local partners, rural communities, and conservancies to oversee implementation in the region.
“LLF is proud to have signed the first-ever perpetual grant with WWF and IRDNC. This ensures reliable and substantial funding of 1 Million USD annually for over 50+ years and with strong governance of local rights-holders. We are very thankful to welcome this exceptional Namibian site into the LLF network,” Stefanie Lang, executive director of LLF said.
As per LLF’s private-public model, the USD 20 million grant will be further complemented by match funding from the Rob Walton Foundation, a private philanthropic donor.
The Skeleton Coast-Etosha site in the Kunene Region of north-western Namibia is a conservation bridge that passes through several conserved areas and connects two national parks and embraces the first “People’s Park” – a new conservation category that expands the formalization of community conservation. The region is renowned for its unique biodiversity, exceptionally high variety of species, and is home to 14 local communal conservancies.
“We as Namibians are deservedly proud of our conservation record. Forty-five (45)% of the land in our country is under conservation management, including national parks, protected areas, and communal conservancies for which Namibia has been a global pioneer. Once more, we are proud to support a unique partnership between the LLF, IRDNC, and WWF with the establishment of the Skeleton Coast-Etosha Conservation Bridge. The LLF unites these lands in a vision shared by the local communities and the national government to protect and conserve this spectacular land and the rich life it holds. We anticipate through the LLF that real transformation of livelihoods will take place while pursuing our conservation efforts,” Teo Nghitila, Executive Director, Ministry of Environment Forestry and Tourism, Namibia said.
LLF’s perpetual grant of USD one million per year over 50+ years will contribute to ensuring species population connectivity through wildlife corridors, climate resilience in the region, and protection of key vulnerable fauna such as the black rhino, lion, and giraffe, amongst a multitude of less conspicuous endemic species.
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