Tourism Concessions

in Namibia’s Protected Areas

Maputo

19 March 2012

Peter John Massyn

Protected Areas Network

✓ Line ministry responsible for environment and

tourism (MET)

✓ Extensive network of PAs & conservancies with

considerable tourism potential

✓ 20 national parks covering 13% of country

✓ 71 communal conservancies covering 20% of

country

✓ 3 ‘state concessions’ destined to become

‘Kunene Peoples Park’ ( including 6,000km2

Palmwag Concession)

Institutional Framework

✓ Concessions policy approved by Cabinet in 2007

✓ Operates within existing & draft legal frameworks (Nature

Conservation Ordinance & Parks & Wildlife Bill)

✓ Replaces ad hoc approach of the past

✓ Establishes “standard & robust procedure” for award &

management of tourism concessions on state land

✓ Institutional structure:

− Minister is responsible authority with wide discretion

− Concessions Committee appointed by Minister provides advice &

oversight

− Concessions Unit in the Directorate of Tourism does day-to- day

implementation

✓ Integrated with national CBNRM/conservancy programme

✓ Strong donor & NGO support (EU, World Bank, UNDP, KfW,

MCA, NACSO, etc.)

Policy Objectives

✓ To enhance biodiversity conservation through

regulation of commercial operations in PAs

✓ To improve management & control of PAs

✓ To increase revenue generation from PAs

✓ To increase economic contribution of PAs

✓✓✓✓ To advance the ‘economic empowerment’ of

park neighbours and all ‘formerly

disadvantaged Namibians’

✓✓✓✓ To promote sustainable rural development,

poverty alleviation & job creation

Balances conservation, commerce & rural development

Award Process

“The process for awarding concessions will be transparent, objective and fair, but with the

empowerment of formerly disadvantaged Namibians as a priority, and preference given to

rural communities…”

Tender

Auction

Direct award

Direct Award

✓ At the discretion of the Minister (after consultation & guided by policy)

✓ Preference to ‘communities’ resident in or near protected areas

✓ Objective is to ‘mitigate costs’, build incentives & stimulate rural development

✓ Community concessionaires must be legally incorporated, “representative,

accountable and stable”

✓ MET’s role is to:

− award ‘head concessions’ to qualifying

communities (mostly conservancies)

− standardize subaward procedures & oversee

selection of operating partners

− ensure that communities act in terms of

their mandates & are ‘not exploited’

Progress to Date

✓ Concessions Committee and Concessions Unit established & operational

(with donor & NGO support)

✓ Standardized procedures & templates adopted & routinely used

✓ Several competitive tenders awarding concessions in parks to private firms

successfully concluded

✓ Direct award of ‘head concessions’ to communities

at Palmwag/Skeleton Coast, Etendeka, Hobatere/Etosha

& Bwabwata (more to follow)

✓ Some community concessionaires opted for competitive

tenders to select operating partners (Hobatere,

White Sands, Bwabwata)

✓ Others used structured negotiation (RFP, evaluation,

negotiations, closure) with trusted incumbents to reappoint

operating partners (Etendeka & Palmwag)

StateState

ConservancyConservancy

OperatorOperator

‘Head Concession Contract’

‘Concession Operator Contract’

Balance Sheet

✓ Extensive & under-developed resource base

✓ Well-developed institutional environment:

− Enabling legislation & policy in place

− MET concessions unit operational

− Standardized procedures & documents in use

− Well-developed CBNRM programme

− Established network of support NGOs

− Fairly large domestic tourism sector

✓ Track record of success

✗ Uneven political support

✗ Competition from state resort company (NWR)

✗ Competition from mining (trumps all)

✗ Sustainability beyond donor support?

✗ Recession in tourism source markets

Thank You!