KAZA TFCA MINISTERS COMMUNIQUÉ

Ministers of five partner countries reiterate their commitment

Date: 15 July 2010, Livingstone, Zambia
We, the Ministers responsible for environment, wildlife, natural resources, hotels and tourism in the Republics of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, met in Livingstone, Zambia on 15 July 2010 to review progress on the establishment and development of the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA).

Reiterating our commitment to the sustainable and prudent utilisation of our natural resources for the benefit of our peoples, we note with satisfaction that the internal country consultations on the KAZA TFCA draft Treaty are ongoing in all Partner Countries. We will ensure that all processes are followed for the KAZA TFCA to be fully operationalised. We note the successful completion of Phase 1 of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) for Zimbabwe and the progress made towards the completion of the Angolan IDP.

We note with satisfaction that all the KAZA TFCA institutional structures are now in place and have been operationalised including the recruitment and appointment of the KAZA TFCA Secretariat staff.

We note with great concern the presence of landmines in the Angolan component of the KAZA TFCA and we request the solidarity from the international community to support the continued efforts by the Angolan Government of demining of the area.

We thank our development partners for the support they have given to the establishment and development of the KAZA TFCA thus far.
We congratulate the people of the Republic of Namibia for holding peaceful Presidential and National Assembly elections in November 2009. We further congratulate the Republics of Angola and South Africa for successfully hosting the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and the FIFA World Cup respectively.

We appreciate the warm and generous hospitality offered to the delegates by the host country, the Republic of Zambia and resolve to hold our next meeting in December 2010, in the Republic of Zimbabwe.