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{
    "id": 759735,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/759735/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 15,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Halake",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13184,
        "legal_name": "Abshiro Soka Halake",
        "slug": "abshiro-soka-halake"
    },
    "content": "Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, Sir, for giving me the opportunity to comment on the Petition that is before us this afternoon. I would like to say that 60 to 70 or 80 per cent of wildlife live outside government protected areas. Therefore, the people who should be custodians of these wildlife – and who have been hosting them – more than the Government is the community. So, if there is a provision within the Act that is going to empower the communities to take charge of wildlife conservation outside the protected areas, it should be given priority. In support of the Petition, there are several conservation approaches in the country. This includes the Government protected areas such as the national parks, which is what Sen. Olekina is describing, where domestic animals do not go in and they have to go at night. There are also private ranches and community conservancies. With all these, most of the wildlife in this country is hosted by communities. Therefore, these committees give our communities a chance to participate in conservation and benefit from it because, in large part, one of the issues around wildlife crisis is because of the fact that there is disproportionate amount of benefits that go to people that do not host the wildlife or to other places. The petitioner has a right to alert this House to this fact. Senators should, therefore, give this Petition priority and ensure that we get this actualized and implemented as soon as possible. Having laws is one thing but they are not useful if we are not going to make sure that they are implemented. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the issue is beyond human-wildlife conflict but, of course, the Committees would help with human-wildlife conflict. But beyond that, I think that it is about time communities that have lived, hosted and even been custodians of the wild-life of this country get a say and participate in conservation of the same. They should actually be given the chance to do so especially if there are provisions in law that have given them the right to participate. So, Mr. Speaker, Sir, I humbly request this House to take this issue seriously. The economy and tourism of this country is largely wildlife-based. But what is the trickle- down effect of the economics of that fact? Are the communities really feeling it? So, if the implementation of this Act would empower the communities, this is something that we should support. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I will bring a Bill before this House on community conservancy resourcing in the next few weeks. But when I saw this Petition, I thought what a good thing to start with because little steps do add up. As a conservationist, I have observed"
}