The Voice of the Traditional Authorities in the Management of Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Park, South Africa.

The study focuses on the community-conservation partnership between the conservation agency, Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife (EKZNW) and the surrounding tribal communities. The community conservation partnership approach can be attained through economical involvement of rural people in promoting the survival of species within protected areas. This approach suggests that greater involvement of neighbouring communities in the management of the Park should target the interest of the communities in promoting community-conservation partnerships. Community-conservation partnerships are a means of addressing the challenges that resulted from the western colonial system which led to the removal of the local communities when their land was wrenched from them to form Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Park. The tribal authorities were less recognised as most of the traditional functions were passed to the magistrates. The purpose of this research paper is to establish the extent to which local communities participate in decision-making regarding the management of nature conservation resources, whether Park officials are supportive of a participatory community-conservation approach and to evaluate the extent to which tribal authorities participate in tourism development within the study area. With the changes in the political landscape, the portion of the park was subjected to land claims by communities that were historically dispossessed of their land and rights. Questionnaires and interviews were used to collect data from the respondents, who consisted of local communities, residing adjacent to the park and officials of EKZNW. The findings indicate that, although opportunities are created for local communities to be involved in the management and tourism development within the Park, the concept of a participatory community-conservation approach seems not to have been fully pursued in the context of Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Park. Co-existence of the communities and park authorities is still unattainable at the participatory level, in spite of both parties showing willingness for it