Southern African leaders gathered on Friday, May 23, 2025, to mark 25 years of transfrontier conservation cooperation and address challenges in managing shared natural resources across the region.
The SADC Transfrontier Conservation Areas Summit brought together heads of state and government representatives from 12 member nations to discuss cross-border wildlife management, anti-poaching efforts and sustainable tourism development.
Zimbabwean President, Emmerson Mnangagwa, who chairs the Southern African Development Community, opened the summit under the theme “Transfrontier Conservation Areas-25 Years of Cooperation for Regional Integration and Sustainable Development.”
The summit commemorated achievements in transboundary conservation while addressing ongoing challenges, including human-wildlife conflict and the need for sustainable financing mechanisms.
Leaders urged member states to strengthen community participation in conservation efforts and ensure equitable benefit sharing from transfrontier conservation areas.
The summit stressed the importance of including rural communities and youth in conservation programmes.
Delegates called for innovative financing approaches, including carbon markets, biodiversity offsets, eco-tourism partnerships and public-private collaborations to fund conservation initiatives.
The summit highlighted anti-poaching efforts through the SADC Law Enforcement Anti-Poaching Strategy as essential to combating wildlife crime across borders.
Leaders emphasised the need for cooperation among member states, international partners and local communities.
Five countries – Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe – agreed to pilot a regional tourism visa system designed to simplify travel and boost intra-regional tourism.
The gathering also promoted the establishment of coastal and marine conservation areas to implement the SADC Blue Economy Strategy, aimed at the sustainable use of marine resources, including fisheries, tourism and maritime transport.
Leaders paid tribute to former presidents Festus Mogae of Botswana and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa as pioneers of transfrontier conservation in the region.
The summit drew more than 500 delegates and 30 exhibitors, including government officials, international partners, non-governmental organisations, community leaders and conservation experts.
Leaders called for international recognition of SADC conservation successes and urged the global community to support sustainable wildlife use that benefits local communities while advancing conservation goals.
The summit concluded with commitments to strengthen regional cooperation in biodiversity conservation, sustainable resource management and eco-tourism development across the 16-nation SADC bloc.
By Winston Mwale, AfricaBrief