The NSFM-Project organised the third Round Table Discussion on the subject ‘Fencing in Community Forests and Conservancies’, this time in Katima Mulilo. Different representatives of the Zambezi Regions’ Traditional Authorities, the Community Forests, the Communal Land Board, and the Directorate of Forestry met for another vital event in Zambezi Regions’ capital. This Round Table Discussion is an important component of the ‘Promoting Sustainable Forest Management in the Kavango-Zambezi Region in Namibia’ (NSFM) Project, an EU-funded initiative jointly implemented by the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) Namibia together with the Desert Research Foundation of Namibia (DRFN).
The Round Table Discussion aimed at providing all stakeholders invited with a platform to exchange their different points of view about fencing. However, before the actual discussion started, Mr Uaraera Tjaveondja from the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) set all participants on the same page to ensure an informed discussion by using practical examples to explain the legal aspects of fencing. He explained, inter alia, the differences between fencing on communal land and fencing in Community Forests.
The event was moderated by Mr Brian Kabuku who also assisted the elderly with translations. After the welcoming remarks provided by the Chairperson of the Communal Land Board of Zambezi Region, Mr Cletius Mubita, Dr Clemens von Doderer, Resident Representative of the HSF, elaborated on the objective of the event. Before the presentation from the LAC set everyone to the same level of knowledge, all participants introduced themselves. Thereafter, a lively discussion arose, and different stakeholder groups made use of the platform provided by the Round Table Discussion to state their perspective and elaborate on what is taking place in their Community Forests.
The event concluded with a vote of thanks provided by the NSFM-Project Assistant Mr George Lyanabu.
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