Every legacy starts with a great idea: the Skeleton Coast Etosha Conservation Bridge

The 55,299 square kilometres of land between the Etosha and Skeleton Coast national parks are renowned for unique biodiversity and an exceptionally high species variety. This part of the country is highly vulnerable to climate change, however. It is also home to people who have lived alongside wildlife for untold centuries. They were among the pioneers in community conservation and established some of the first communal conservancies in Namibia.

Fourteen of these communal conservancies form a ´bridge' between the two national parks by creating space for wildlife and thus generating socioeconomic benefits for the people living on this land. The newer concept of People's Parks allows conservancies to create formal protected areas on their lands by joining areas that are zoned for wildlife while retaining their rights to that land and the benefits it generates. Although these conservancies are well-established (some are nearly 30 years old), they continue to face challenges that require external support and partnerships to overcome.

The Legacy Landscapes Fund (LLF), which aims to provide long-term support for nature, climate and people, has come at an ideal time for the conservancies. This global fund was established in response to a critical realisation among policymakers: traditional short-term project approaches of 3-5 years have proven inadequate in addressing the urgent needs of global conservation. Recognising that the challenge of biodiversity loss is too vast and complex for any single sector to tackle alone, LLF was created to forge a powerful partnership between public and private sector actors with a unified and sustainable framework for long-term conservation efforts.

LLF was established in late 2020 by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development as an independent charitable foundation under German law, designed to guarantee long-term conservation funding for nature, climate and people. Four years later, LLF provides long-term funding for the protection of areas in 15 countries across 4 continents, covering more than 473,000 square kilometres. This includes the Skeleton Coast Etosha Conservation Bridge in Namibia.

John Kasaona, CEO of Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation (IRDNC), an LLF implementing partner, says, The Legacy Landscapes Fund provides vital support to elevate the existing conservation efforts to new heights. The long-term goal is to enhance conservation efforts and support the upliftment of rural communities. The changing climate requires rural residents to participate in climate-resilient activities. Additionally, landscape-level connectivity will be crucial for the future, as individual conservancy areas may not have a significant impact on species abundance. This presents a new opportunity for nature-based development, which will ultimately benefit the local people.

Dr Juliane Zeidler, Country Director of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Namibia, adds, Respect for indigenous people and local communities is at the core of WWF's inclusive conservation approach and it is embedded in the fabric of LLF. Environmental and social safeguards are applied throughout consultation, development and implementation processes, and there is a secure mechanism for sharing grievances with the confidence that they will be handled with honesty and respect. Namibia's WWF office is the first in the WWF network to become a partner in LLF.

The vision for the Skeleton Coast Etosha Conservation Bridge is ambitious: To ensure a connected, resilient, economically viable conservation landscape for people and nature that restores and maintains landscape connectivity and generates conservation and improved socio-economic development.

This statement reflects the will of the local people. For me, I was born here, grew up here, I know the living standard of the people. LLF inspires me because I know it will bring changes to the people of these conservancies. The child of my child's child will be better off than we used to be, says Siegfried Muzuma, the Chairperson of the Ehrivopuka Conservancy.

A great deal of demanding work will be needed to bring this wish for the future to fruition. Partners in government, WWF Namibia and IRDNC, other national non-government organisations (NGOs) and rural communities are working together to achieve results in three defined thematic areas: good governance and management; improved livelihoods, resilience, health and education; and to secure healthy habitats and connectivity.

At a recent meeting with the LLF technical team, Bennett Kahuure, Director of Parks for the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism (MEFT), emphasised, Livelihoods are especially important to us, as are human rights. The government supports the LLF, which will help us continue to upscale and improve the delivery of our work.

Conservation challenges in this landscape include climate change and aridification, alien invasive plants, pressure on small populations of rare species from wildlife crime, human-wildlife conflict, abandoned small mines and the risk of encroachment from unsustainable development including mining and tourism operations. There has also been a sharp decline in wildlife numbers, due at least in part to the prolonged drought.

WWF and IRDNC are approaching these challenges methodically with projects designed for long-term impact. Pauline Lindeque, Wildlife and Landscapes Programme Director for WWF Namibia, explains, The LLF grant provides one million USD per year. The plan which WWF developed with IRDNC and MEFT is designed to focus on specific activities in targeted areas, to achieve the set objectives in those areas and then allocate resources to address new challenges or pursue additional opportunities, ultimately promoting progressive self-sufficiency.

For example, remnants of old mining operations will be cleared from Skeleton Coast National Park and discrete barriers will be established to protect lichen fields in Dorob National Park. Another example is providing support for the emerging Ombonde and Hoanib People's Parks, making it possible for the communities to charge entry fees, hire game guards and build tourism infrastructure that will increase their long-term income.

One of the programme's research priorities is to understand the dynamics of wildlife populations in hyper-arid north-western Namibia for improved post-drought recovery, while maximising livelihood benefits. A collaborative project involving WWF, the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), MEFT and St. Andrews University – the latter supported by the UK government's programme Reversing Environmental Degradation in Africa and Asia (REDAA) – is designed to answer questions relating to the current drought and low wildlife numbers.

During the early years of community conservation in this region, wildlife populations recovered dramatically, allowing communities to begin building a thriving wildlife-based economy. However, prolonged drought has caused wildlife (and livestock) numbers to crash over the last decade. People have lost their food supply, and while the embryonic tourism side of the wildlife economy survived despite the devastating impact of COVID-19, it has been seriously weakened. For full socioeconomic recovery, wildlife populations need to recover.   

Over the next four years, researchers and stakeholders will work together to: 

• Collate data collected by communities and researchers to identify wildlife corridors and dispersal zones and identify obstacles to those.
• Develop a strategy for the restoration of habitats and wildlife within the landscape (including possible reintroduction of key species once land-use and governance structures are in place and the drought has broken). 
• Explore Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) models (wildlife, biodiversity and carbon credits) as mechanisms to secure the protection of key habitats. 
• Identify and facilitate joint venture biodiversity economy partnerships for socio-economic development. 

By understanding the social, environmental and spatial dynamics that have led to wildlife and habitat decline, actions can be taken to reverse the trends and enhance climate resilience, thus improving livelihoods and conservation outcomes. 

In my opinion, LLF's support arrived at a critical moment when the future of Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) was uncertain. We are grateful for LLF's generous commitment, and we are confident that it will help us change the conservation landscape going forward, ultimately improving the lives of the local community members, John Kasaona says.

It will take time to achieve these goals, which is why the long-term focus of the Legacy Landscapes Fund is so well suited to the conservation and economic needs of this landscape. Funding for the Skeleton Coast Etosha Conservation Bridge will be in place for 50 or more years, allowing us to plan with care, act with a common purpose and achieve a better future for all.