Capacity boost in northern parks

Minister of Environment and Tourism, Hon Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah officiated at the ground breaking of two new park management stations to be constructed at Bwabwata and Mudumu National Park. The groundbreaking ceremonies took place earlier this week in the Caprivi and Okavango Regions respectively. The initiative, which is co-funded by the Namibian and German governments, forms part of the government’s development and conservation initiatives in north eastern Namibia.
The event was also attended by the German Ambassador Egon Kochanke, the Governor of the Caprivi Region, representatives of the Traditional Authorities and the German Development Bank (KfW), which is the co-financier behind the Bwabwata Mudumu Mamili (BMM) Parks Project on behalf of the German government.
Speaking at the occassion, Nandi-Ndaitwah stressed the importance of the national park stations saying that the national parks are one of the key tourism draw cards in the country adding that there is a demand for new destinations in Namibia “ Tourists are keen to discover our best-kept secrets, which include the Bwabwata and Mudumu National Parks.   These parks have the potential to bring in maximum yields for the country as they offer new areas and routes for tourists to explore. It means they have a great potential of generating new tourism product packages,” said the minister.
Nandi-Ndaitwah emphasised the importance of the national park stations and said that integrated park management is needed to ensure that a holistic approach to conservation and development would lead to a win-win situation for people, biodiversity and tourism. The minister also used the platform to officially open the Mashi Tourism Hub. In March 2011, Nandi-Ndaitwah and Kochanke together inaugurated the Mahango Park Station, the first park management station of the BMM Project.