Herders’ invasion of Ihefu basin is case meriting careful handling

Rapid arithmetic would suggest that the grazing land problem is likely to be worse than obtained then. One reason for this appears to be that there are more herders and therefore us more animals to feed than was the case previously.

Traditional cattle grazers’ districts like Loliondo, Ngorongoro, Tarime and Simanjiro offer scant respite in that regard.

In fact, the ecological situation in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area is approaching crisis proportions, on the basis of what authorities there have been saying over the past two months in particular.

The herders are becoming more and more numerous, and efforts to let go of some unused portions of game conservation areas lead to disruptions of ecosystem linkages vital to survival logistics of various species. It also invites exposure of local populations to wildlife rampages.

As noticed even during the 2006 evictions and subsequent reinvasion of Ihefu basin by herders, and why the sky seems to be caving in for many of them when cattle are impounded for trespass on government conserved area, the herders too have a problem living with this situation.

That kind of contention for land use is creeping up in a more gradual and virtually painless manner relative to what other countries are experiencing. Cattle rustling in the past decade or two shifted from spears to firearms, igniting civil wars.

The level of violence that the contention for land use has seen in Tanzania is farmers battling herders and the latter often grazing animals on planted land.

However, with population expansion and land use patterns remaining the same, chances of courting worse trouble are far too high for anyone to ignore. Policy-wise, we relish big herds for skins and hides industries, not fewer head of cattle.

It is a safe bet that policy projection in that respect has been a challenge, first because there is nothing inherently wrong with having many cows, and secondly because it is difficult to legislate on such a matter.

Policy has taken the middle path, of demarcating areas for herding and for farming. In an instance in Mbarali last month, a herder pointed out that the district did not set out areas for grazing – implying that only farming and conservation have a hearing.

The land demarcation policy appears to suppose that land so demarcated is adequate for both farming and grazing, and thus no one should trespass into conserved areas, or invade farms for grazing purposes.

Yet experience shows that this is not the case, and consequently a communal approach to grazing land will not solve the problem.

Only an individualised approach to landholding, where possibly the best option is for herders to form cooperatives to help them obtain loans to bring water to reservoirs and thus improve breeds so that the cattle numbers fit given areas There is thus plenty of work for the authorities to take up.