Johannesburg – South African wildlife-producer communities on Wednesday vowed not to vote for political parties that do not support their desire to benefit from the sustainable use of wild animals, including international hunting and plant products.
South Africa goes to the polls next year.
The declaration was made a day after South African wildlife-producer communities formed a new entity named the “Community Association of South Africans in Natural Resources (CASA Nature)”.
In a statement released Wednesday, CASA Nature said it was formed to lobby for and communicate the needs of South African wildlife-producer rural communities to significantly benefit from their natural resources through international hunting, trade in wildlife products, medicinal plant products, and nature markets (selling carbon credits).
CASA Nature said it also strives for peace, justice, and security of community benefits from biodiversity.
“CASA Nature is a community-livelihoods voice calling for significant economic benefits from natural resources driven by sub-economies,” said the statement.
CASA Nature revealed that it was “technically supported” by internationally recognized experts from various fields, including lawyers, strategists/think tanks, conservation, academics, researchers, communication and advocacy experts.
“We provide people with the power to understand, demand, and defend their rights to benefit from their natural resources including wild animals and plants so that in turn, they thankfully conserve them,” said CASA Nature Chairperson Esther Netshivhongweni, a well-known conservationist.
“Nature and Us are Together Being One.
“But without benefits from natural resources, not a single community is going to see the need to conserve them.
“Our main and urgent responsibility is to design the CASA Nature community learning platform which will serve as a link between people, nature, and economy.”
CASA Nature said that it wants to benefit from biological diversity goods and services, including legal and sustainable international trade in wildlife products, underground economy (mining), clean energy, space technology, and regenerative agriculture.
The newly formed independent rural communities’ conservation movement, CASA Nature is part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Community Leaders Network (CLN).
CASA Nature is empowered by South African Constitution section 24 and the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights to demand benefits from the missed community economic opportunities to benefit from carbon credits, international hunting, space economy (clean energy and space technology), and the new and fast-growing biological diversity credits sector.
Representing rural Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) and also being the lead wildlife-custodian in nine provinces, CASA Nature has called on all political parties, including the government “to explain their position on sustainable use of South African natural resources ahead of the 2024 general elections.”
“They should put these issues on their political campaign agenda to show whether they stand with or against CASA Nature’s call for immediate sustainable use commitment,” the statement said.
“Section 24 (b) of South Africa’s Constitution supports sustainable use: everyone has the right to an environment protected for the benefit of present and future generations.
“Yet all the country’s political parties’ manifestos are apparently silent on the sustainable use issues related to international hunting, nature economy, trade in wildlife products such as ivory, and sustainable harvesting of medicinal plants to benefit conservation and development.
“We support and vote for political parties that support sustainable use of our natural resources for the benefit of our communities.”
Netshivhongweni said: “The 14th of November 2023 marked a historical day when our 29-year-old democracy gave birth to the first of its kind, Community-Based Natural Resources Management Association called CASA Nature”.
“It’s the only independent and non-politically influenced community voice for advocating for the significant conservation and socio-economic benefits of the current and future generations, arising from the sustainable use of our natural resources.”
The executive of the newly formed CASA Nature
The executive – formalised during a virtual meeting on Tuesday – comprises active and well-known local advocates for community rights to enjoy significant benefits from biodiversity, underground, and space economies as well as regenerative agriculture through sustainable use of natural resources.
The chairperson is the fearless and combative community natural resources activist, Netshivhongweni from Limpopo. She is a Master of Commerce graduate with extensive executive experience in both public and private sectors.
Netshivhongweni served on several boards for both public and private institutions and is an international biodiversity finance expert with vast knowledge of community conservation rights and a renowned campaigner for community-natural resources rights.
Netshivhongweni currently chairs IPLCs Community Advisory Panel (CAP) of the Biodiversity Credit Alliance (BCA) and serves as a member of the Governance Working Group of the International Advisory Panel for Biodiversity (IAPB).
The CASA Nature deputy chairman is Kwazulu-Natal’s Giveson Nomandla, who has vast experience in people and parks matters with extensive experience in training and agriculture.
The secretary-general is Lourence Mogakane who worked with South Africa People and Parks for 15 years – 10 of them as its chairman.
He is deputised by the young and energetic fighter for Indigenous Community rights, Bryan Miennies, of Northern Cape’s Khomani San Community.
CASA Nature Treasurer-General is Nicholas Kgotse who is an expert in investment finance including payroll systems.
Meanwhile, CASA Nature is appealing to the Department of Forestry Fisheries and Environment (DFFE) not to rush the process of consulting communities regarding commenting on the White Paper on conservation and sustainable use; including other related legislation on “iconic species” which include the lion and black rhino.
“The transformation of South Africa’s wildlife sector can only succeed when local communities are first being empowered to understand the implications of the proposed new changes and their conservation and socio-economic developmental impacts,” said the CASA Nature statement.
“The Mpumalanga Bushbuck Ridge is a case in point of the negative outcome of the DFFE’s rushed consultative process.
“The Bushbuck Ridge meeting was a disappointment and a good example of policy development and policy consultation process which is not yet geared to empower our communities.
“As a result, it was almost exclusively attended by unemployed youth. Accordingly, unemployment issues and not white paper issues; topped the meeting’s discussions. The meeting ended inconclusively.
“Therefore, we recommend that it be reconvened correctly.”
Henceforth, CASA Nature said that to ensure that “there is fair policy development process we recommend the need for the DFFE to work with our communities to craft policy development and policy consultation processes which our communities will be free to access and free to comment on.”
