Govt. should renew proposal for nomination of Eastern Arc Mountains

We thank the Norwegian government for its gesture and previous financial assistance that it has made towards the conservation of the mountains.

There is no doubt that such financial support will go a long way in ensuring that the forests are protected given their unparalleled global, national and local importance.

The grants to conserve the mountains apart, Tanzania missed a golden chance when in 2011 it withdrew from a 14-year process to nominate the country’s Eastern Arc Mountains forests as a World Heritage Site after it was considered that the mountains were a valuable environmental hotspot that supports the livelihoods of millions of people.

For Tanzania, the Eastern Arc Mountains covering an area of 5,350 square kilometres in 15 districts of Tanga, Kilimanjaro, Morogoro, Dodoma and Iringa regions, mean almost everything.

The mountains mean biodiversity, they mean water, they mean tourism and they mean irrigation farming. In short, they are the heartbeat of the country’s economy.

Inscription on the World Heritage List brings increased international recognition of the importance of the area; assistance in safeguarding the natural heritage of the site; and assistance in encouraging local populations to participate in conserving and benefiting from the natural heritage of the site.

The process to seek World Heritage Site status was first proposed by the then Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Ms Zakia Meghji in 1997.

But retired President Jakaya Kikwete in 2011 rejected the nomination for the Eastern Arc Mountains as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, losing the international recognition and support in safeguarding the area.

Since Tanzania is a signatory to the Convention concerning the protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage we feel that it is high time relevant authorities renewed the proposal to list the Eastern Arc Mountains in the World Heritage Site.

Currently, Tanzania has seven landmarks listed in the World Heritage Site. They are the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, the Serengeti National Park, the Selous Game Reserve, the Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songa Mnara, the Kilimanjaro National Park, the Kondoa Rock-Art sites and Zanzibar Stone Town.

Indeed, the Eastern Arc needs protection at all costs taking into account of its environmental importance. It is recognised globally as part of one of the 34 biodiversity hotspots characterized by high concentrations of endemic species currently under great threat of extinction.

At national level, the Eastern Arc Mountains forests form major catchment areas which collectively provide water for most of the nation’s coastal communities accounting for 25 per cent of mainland Tanzania’s population of over 40 million and most of the major industries in the country.

About 60 per cent of Tanzania’s electricity is generated from water sources originating in the forests, including Kidatu, Mtera, Nyumba ya Mungu and Kihansi hydropower stations.

Estimates suggest that more than 70 per cent of the original forest cover has been destroyed in the Eastern Arc Mountains forests.

Over the past 100 years, large tracts of forest have been converted to farmland, or lost due to timber harvesting and uncontrolled fires. This should be reversed by enlisting the mountains as the World Heritage Site.