Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) is the second-largest nature and landscape conservation area in the world, spanning the international borders of five countries in

Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost region of Africa. No definition is agreed upon, but some groupings include the United Nations geoscheme for Africa, United Nations geoscheme, the intergovernmental Southern African Development Community, and ...

. It includes a major part of the Upper

Zambezi River The Zambezi (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than half of t ...

and

Okavango basin The Kalahari Basin, also known as the Kalahari Depression, Okavango Basin or the Makgadikgadi Basin, is an endorheic basin and large lowland area covering approximately — mostly within Botswana and Namibia, but also parts of Angola, South A ...

s and Delta, the

Caprivi Strip The Caprivi Strip, also known simply as Caprivi, is a geographic salient protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia. It is bordered by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north. Namibia, Botswana and Zambia meet at a sing ...

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

, the southeastern part of

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

, southwestern

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

, the northern wildlands of

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

and western

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

. The centre of this area is at the confluence of the Zambezi and

Chobe River The Cuando (or Kwando) is a river in south-central Africa flowing through Angola and Namibia's Caprivi Strip and into the Linyanti Swamp on the northern border of Botswana. Below the swamp, the river is called the Linyanti River and, farther east ...

s where the borders of Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe meet. It incorporates a number of notable national parks and nature sites, including

Chobe National Park Chobe National Park is Botswana's first national park, and also the most Biodiversity, biologically diverse. Located in the north of the country, it is Botswana's third largest park, after Central Kalahari Game Reserve and Gemsbok National Park. ...

Hwange National Park Hwange National Park (formerly Wankie Game Reserve) is the largest natural reserve in Zimbabwe. It is around 14,600 sq km in area. It lies in the northwest of the country, just off the main road between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. The nearest ...

, and the

Victoria Falls Victoria Falls (Lozi language, Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "Thundering Smoke/Smoke that Rises"; Tonga language (Zambia and Zimbabwe), Tonga: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a waterfall on the Zambezi River, located on the border betwe ...

. The region is home to approximately 250,000 African Elephants, the largest population in the world.

History

The idea was initiated by Shoshong Constituency Foundation and the

World Wide Fund for Nature The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named th ...

. It was inspired by the Okavango–Upper Zambezi International Tourism Initiative and the Four Corners Transboundary Natural Resource Management. In 2003 the ministers responsible for tourism in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe met in

Katima Mulilo Katima Mulilo or simply Katima is the capital of the Zambezi Region in Namibia. It had 46,401 inhabitants in 2023, and comprises two electoral constituencies, Katima Mulilo Rural and Katima Mulilo Urban. It is located on the B8 national roa ...

, Namibia, about the project. In 2006 the

Southern African Development Community The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is an inter-governmental organization headquartered in Gaborone, Botswana. Goals The SADC's goal is to further regional socio-economic cooperation and integration as well as political and se ...

(SADC) endorsed the KAZA TFCA as a SADC project, and later in 2006 the five partner countries signed a memorandum of understanding at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. The establishment of the area was confirmed on August 18, 2011, through a treaty signed by the heads of government of the five participating countries. The official opening of the area occurred on March 15, 2012, in Katima Mulilo. Financial support comes from a variety of sources. These include KfW Development bank, the German government, the World Bank, the Netherlands, and Sweden.

Lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

s were studied throughout the area in 2014. In November 2014, the governments of Zambia and Zimbabwe introduced a common KAZA visa, allowing holders to move freely across borders within the conservation area.

Components

Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation map de

The Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area has an area of . Of this land, 17% is in Angola, 30% in Botswana, 14% in Namibia, 25% in Zambia, and 14% in Zimbabwe. of the included land consists of pre-existing

protected areas Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewoo ...

. The incorporated protected areas are: in Zambia: * Kafue National Park *

Liuwa Plain National Park Liuwa Plain National Park is a national park in Zambia's Western Province, Zambia, Western Province. "Liuwa" means "plain" in the local Liuwa language, a dialect of Lozi language, and the plains originally served as a hunting ground for Lewa ...

* Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park * Sioma Ngwezi National Park * Lower Zambezi National Park in Namibia: * Bwabwata National Park * Khaudum National Park * Mangetti National Park * Mudumu National Park * Nkasa Rupara National Park in Botswana: *

Makgadikgadi Pan The Makgadikgadi Pan ( Tswana pronunciation ), a salt pan situated in the middle of the dry savanna of north-eastern Botswana, is one of the largest salt flats in the world. The pan is all that remains of the formerly enormous Lake Makgadi ...

* Nxai Pan National Park *

Moremi Game Reserve Moremi Game Reserve is a protected area in Botswana. It lies on the eastern side of the Okavango Delta and was named after Chief Moremi of the BaTawana tribe. Moremi was designated as a game reserve, rather than a national park, when it was ...

in Zimbabwe: * Chizarira National Park *

* Kazuma Pan National Park *

Mana Pools National Park Mana Pools National Park is a wildlife conservation area and national park in northern Zimbabwe.Matusadona National Park Matusadona National Park is a national park in northern Zimbabwe situated on the southern shore of Lake Kariba. The park takes its name from the local Matuzviadonha Hills. History Matusadona was proclaimed a non-hunting area on 7 November 1958 ...

Victoria Falls National Park Victoria Falls National Park in north-western Zimbabwe protects the south and east bank of the Zambezi River in the area of the world-famous Victoria Falls. It extends along the Zambezi river from the larger Zambezi National Park about 6 ...

* Zambezi National Park in Angola: *

Luengue-Luiana National Park Six-week-old a bush Luengue-Luiana National Park () is a national park in Angola. Geography The park covers an area of 42,000 km². It is located in Cuando Province in the southeastern corner of Angola. The park is bounded on the west and southw ...

Longa-Mavinga National Park Mavinga is a national park in Cuando Province in south-eastern Angola. It covers an area of . The Park was proclaimed in 2011 along with the neighbouring Luengue-Luiana National Park, which measures . The two parks are contiguous and managed as a ...

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area National parks of Zambia National parks of Zimbabwe National parks of Angola National parks of Namibia National parks of Botswana Transboundary protected areas

History

Components

See also

References

External links