Department of Commercial Crops Fruits & Forestry

CARE International

Participatory Forest and Wildlife Conservation around Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park (PAFOW)

Between 1995 and 2003, CARE Tanzania through its Jozani-Chiwaka Bay Conservation Project (JCBCP) piloted a highly successful approach to participatory forest management in and around Zanzibar's first National Park. The Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park (JCBNP). While the original project was concluded successfully, some new interventions around 8 new extended Jozani area could not be accomplished timely, and therefore this project shall build on the lessons and successes of the former JCBCP with the aim of enhancing the "Longterm mainteneance of Zanzibar's biological diversity while improving the livelihoods through promoting ecologically sustainable activities". The key expected outcomes are - 1) Endangered and endemic species protected, 2) JCBNP protected and adjacent village forests managed sustainably, 3) Economic status of the target population improved and 4) Community based resource governance systems institubed.

Zanzibar Preparedness and Response

Tanzania was to hold its National and Presidential elections on the 30th October. Since independence elections have been moments when civil / political strife have manifest in this society. Zanzibar has been an extremely sensitive flash point as the fundamental political accommodation at independence remains contested. The Zanzibar archipelago has 2 main islands, Unguja with a population of 650,000 and Pemba with 350,000. There has already been violence in other parts of the country be we are focusing on Zanzibar at the moment. The natural death of a vice presidential candidate from one of the opposition parties 4 days before the election led to a delay in the National and Presidential Election from Sunday 30 October until 18 December. However, in the constitution this did not apply to the Zanzibar archipelago and elections continued last Sunday. The results were announced on Wednesday and highly improbable against all the odds? the ruling party CCM from the mainland won by a few thousand votes. There has been sporadic violence since Sunday and the potential for much more. We had closed all our offices in Unguja and Pemba (the 2 main islands) last week and until further notice. There has also been some violence in Dar and we closed the office and sent all staff home early last Wednesday.

We are part of a small group of UN and other agencies (Red Crescent, ICRC) that have a degree of preparedness. Unicef has for example planned for civil strife for a 10,000 people emergency caseload displaced into multiple sites and needing protection/access by non Tanzanians . ICRC have been leading with scenario planning and over the last few months with monitoring the developments on a daily basis.

We consider that many of our colleagues based in Zanzibar would not be able to operate if there was civil disturbance and mainlanders would not be able to travel nor function safely on the 2 islands.

Scenarios in brief:

The context is a highly visible and highly charged political polarization. We do not envisage any scenario where we could act independently as CARE. We would be able to operate only under a UN and or Red Cross/Crescent flag and that after negotiated access.

Most likely scenario: is general political and civil strife that displaces people from their homes in some districts likely Stone Town. People would seek refuge and congregate in public places mosques, schools etc. The UN planning figure in the joint preparedness plan is 10,000 displaced for 6 months in multiple sites.

Second scenario: Pemba is the most volatile of the islands random violence creating smaller groups (scores up to hundreds) of people moving into the forests and being less visible and harder to reach.

Worse scenario: full scale confrontation communities polarized and islands ghettoize. Numerous militias confronting each other and the military/police. Random repeating displacement of civilians including flight from the island across to Kenya and or mainland Tanzania.

UN has stockpiled humanitarian food and non food items in 2 warehouses (1Pemba, 1 Unguja). Red Cross/Crescent + MSF Spain have been manning First Aid posts (these have been very busy in Stone Town and Pemba since the weekend but now quiet). ICRC has put Emergency medical supplies into several sites and has deployed a small staff from their regional office.