Tanzania human-wildlife conflicts in Monduli district, Northern Tanzania

An assessment of land use conflicts was conducted in 2005 in three semi-arid villages adjacent to the Lake Manyara National Park, within the Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem. The three villages: Esilalei, Barabarani andMigombani are important wildlife dispersal areas and migratory routes linking Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tarangire, Serengeti and Lake Manyara National Parks. Data were collected through household and extension staff interviews, archive data from village government offices and field visits. Conflicts varied across villages and were mainly boundary conflicts with Manyara National Park, crop and livestock depredation by wild animals, land scarcity, loss of land to Tanzania Lands Conservation Trust(TLCT) formerly Manyara Ranch, restrictions to graze in TLCT land and insufficient buffer zone. Several mitigation measures were suggested byboth local communities and field extension staff. These include realization of economic benefits from wildlife related enterprises, relocation of people to low density areas, implementation of compensation schemes for destruction made by wildlife, intensification of patrols, fencing of the park, need for land use plans and the need for villages to formulate their own natural resources management by-laws