Namibia's Communal Conservancy Tourism Sector / NAcsO, Namibia

Finalist, Community Benefit Award 2010

Namibia's Communal Conservancy Tourism Sector (NACSO) is achieving conservation and community benefits at a scale never before seen in Africa. Namibia was the first African country to incorporate protection of the environment into its constitution, and the government has reinforced this by giving its communities the opportunity and rights to manage their wildlife through communal conservancies.

Today there are 59 registered Communal Conservancies covering 16.8% of the land area of Namibia, or 130,000 km2 of prime wildlife habitat. Some 29 joint-venture lodges and campsites operate in partnership with conservancies, a vibrant and growing part of the destination's tourism profile.

The wildlife-friendly land-uses are facilitating the recovery and range expansion of lion, elephant, rhino and many other species at a landscape level. The result may well be 'the greatest African wildlife recovery story ever told'... and Namibia's Communal Conservancy Tourism Sector is helping to tell that story.

NACSO is an umbrella organisation working to help local communities manage their resources.

Judges' Verdict
Through the facilitation of the Ministry of Environment & Tourism, and with the support of several not-for-profit organisations, this community-based natural resource management initiative has benefited a growing number of Namibian communities for over 20 years now. The core of the initiative is the establishment of joint ventures whereby the communities provide tourism development rights, a commitment to actively manage and protect the natural resources and a desire to become involved in the tourism industry. The investors, vetted by NACSO, bring to the table capital, management expertise and access to the tourism market.

Since 1999 US$11.2 million in cash benefits have been accumulated through these joint ventures and benefits have been largely distributed through community-managed funds. Most benefits have gone into social spending such as school bursaries, water installations, human-wildlife conflict compensation, soup kitchens for pensioners, and support for HIV/AIDS-affected orphans. NACSO has developed a truly national initiative that has benefited over 230,000 community members in Namibia and can be seen as a role model across the world.