IFAW Champions Human-Centered Conservation in Southern Africa
By Dickson Bandera
As regional leaders, conservationists, and development partners gather in Harare for the SADC Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCA) International Conference and Summit, Ms. Alleta Nyahuye, Country Director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) in Zimbabwe, has called for a human-centered approach to conservation that values the lives and livelihoods of communities living alongside wildlife.
IFAW, an international NGO operating in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Malawi, and Zambia, has made it its mission to ensure that “animals and people thrive together.”
In Zimbabwe, the organization works extensively in the Hwange, Matetsi, and Zambezi landscapes, which fall within one of Africa’s largest conservation areas—the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA).
“When we talk about biodiversity conservation, there is no conservation to talk about if you don’t talk about people—if you don’t bring people at the center of all the planning and participation that is required,” Ms. Nyahuye told this publication in an interview.
She emphasized that at the core of IFAW’s strategy is coexistence. As wildlife roams freely across borders and protected areas, often crossing through farmlands and villages, conflict with people becomes inevitable. Human-wildlife conflict remains a major concern for communities living on the frontlines of conservation.
“Because as animals roam, or as animals move from one cluster to the next—because it’s about transboundary conservation—they cut across people’s fields. There is livestock attack that is likely to happen,” she explained.
Predator-Proof Bomas: Protecting Livestock and Livelihoods
To mitigate these risks, IFAW has invested in practical, community-led solutions. One of its notable innovations is the installation of predator-proof bomas—reinforced livestock enclosures designed to prevent attacks on cattle and goats by large carnivores such as lions and hyenas.
“We have been supporting the communities with our predator-proof bomas. These are single enclosures that protect the livestock from attack from the wildlife. What we know is that in the Matabeleland North region, for instance, the bulk of the livelihood is also to do with livestock production. And one livestock lost—one cattle lost—is losing 300 to 400 US dollars. So, we protect these animals,” said Ms. Nyahuye.
So far, IFAW has installed around 70 predator-proof bomas in various locations across the Hwange landscape. But their work does not end there.
Water, Agriculture, and Livelihoods
The organisation is also supporting broader community development goals through water access and agriculture.
“We’ve also worked with communities under the Water is Life project. This region is one of the driest—Region Five—where the rainfall is very unreliable and unpredictable, and where the soils are very poor in terms of productivity. So, we are talking to a community that is very minimally diversified,” she said.
To address water insecurity, IFAW has provided solar-powered boreholes for domestic use and small-scale farming.
“As IFAW, we have supported them with water supply for domestic use. It’s not only about game water supply; we’ve also supplied the communities with water. These are solar-powered boreholes that are also providing communities with the opportunity to do nutritional gardens.”
Market-Based Farming Success
She cited the success of the Breakfast community, one of the project’s beneficiaries in Hwange District.
“I’ll speak for the Breakfast community, which is one of the communities in the hotspot zones in Hwange District. The community, in the last season, managed to harvest 15,000 kilograms of butternut. And looking at the proximity of this area with Victoria Falls, which is a hive of tourism activity, there is that connection to support the communities to do what we call market-based production—so that communities have a living at the end of it.”
Technology and Early Warning Systems
IFAW’s support spans across several districts, including Hwange, Tsholotsho, and Lupane. The organisation is also deploying technology-driven early warning systems to monitor wildlife movement and prevent conflict before it escalates. Through its Primary Response Teams, local youth volunteers are equipped with handheld devices to detect and report wildlife incursions in real time.
“We are supporting what we call the Primary Response Teams. These are youth volunteers who are supported with simple handheld enrich devices. They are able to detect when an animal gets into the community or when it breaches—when it gets out of the protected area. As soon as they record this incident, they are reporting it to the responsible authorities, who are the local authorities or the Zimbabwe Parks Authority.”
Blending Traditional Knowledge with Science
According to Ms. Nyahuye, this fusion of traditional knowledge and modern science has transformed how conservation responses are designed.
“There’s a lot of technology in terms of trying to minimize human-wildlife conflict. And not only are we using the technologies, but it’s also citizen science. It’s about the communities themselves—they know the specific routes these animals are using. So we combine both the science and the people to make our decisions in terms of where specific interventions or where our hotspots are—so that we have guided responses.”
Investing in Future Conservation Champions
IFAW is also investing in environmental education and long-term capacity-building through its Catch Them Young initiative, which engages schools and students across the region.
“We’ve also been working with 21 schools in the landscape. It’s an environmental stewardship program—Catch Them Young is the principle. We are working with children and have supported them with 255 bicycles to be able to ride to school.”
“Children are traveling more than five kilometers in a wildlife-prone environment, so we are supporting them with bicycles. We support them with textbooks to reduce the student-book ratio so that we have minimal dropouts. We create conservation champions for the future. We also support them with tuition fee support. Remember, this is a community where people have minimally diversified livelihoods.”
“So we support 255 students with tuition fee support and all the necessary awareness that we conduct with the communities—working with the traditional leaders,” she further added.
Room to Roam: A Continental Vision
All these efforts are anchored in IFAW’s broader continental vision—the Room to Roam initiative, which advocates for expansive, connected landscapes where people and animals can coexist and flourish.
“Our initiative that we promote at IFAW is called the Room to Roam Initiative, where people and animals thrive together. We achieve collaboratively the mission.”
Through this comprehensive, grassroots-driven model, IFAW continues to demonstrate that meaningful conservation outcomes are only possible when communities are not just beneficiaries—but true partners in preserving nature.
