KASANE: The Chobe district, known for its Fauna and Flora is expected to be home to atleast six Forest reserves for eco-tourism in the near future.
This new revelation was made by junior Minister at Presidential Affairs, Governance and Public Administration, Machana Shamukuni.
Shamukuni, who is also area Member of Parliament, was speaking at the just ended Consortium of African Funds for the Environment (CAF├ë)’s eighth general assembly that was held here.
So advanced are the plans to put up the six reserves that the Strategic Environment Assessment for management plans for them have already been completed (August 2018).
In his address to the delegates, Shamukuni said that sustainable use of natural resources is one of the priorities of Botswana’s National development plan (NDP11) which is aligned to the National Vision 2036 and the goals and targets of the UN Sustainable Development Goal.
Consequently the government has put in place measures to ensure that the environment has the ability to generate more goods and services while allowing it to recover and continue to boost the economy,” said Shamukuni.
Shamukuni also noted that the environmental consortiums, such as CAFÉ have been established to be viable mechanisms for securing investment and funding for environmental priorities in Africa.
He said such funding will enable Forest Conservation Botswana (FCB) and other entities operating in the country to fund conservation projects to ensure sustainability of national treasure as while at the same time benefiting the nation and local communities.
FCB hosted the five-day general assembly which was officially opened by the Minister of Environment, Tshekedi Khama.
