The Herding 4 Health Model as a holistic approach to addressing the systemic challenge of livestock-wildlife conflict in communities in and around protected areas.
One of the biggest challenges faced by biodiversity conservation and community development in African communities living in and around protected areas, is human-wildlife conflict (HWC). Significant attention is given to this, although the effect of mitigation measures is often variable at best. There simply is no quick fix. The reason being that HWC is an element embedded within the various landscape systems that coincide in space and time.
The types of conflict that can occur between wildlife and people are vast and typically complicated by culture, tradition, and especially different value systems. A major focus of Herding 4 Hope is conflict between livestock and wildlife in communities living in and around protected areas with free roaming large predators and herbivores. In such communities livestock plays various roles, all of which are regarded as essential to livelihoods, and typically have been for generations. A threat to either the livestock itself, or to the benefit livestock could bring to a household, is regarded as a threat to the community in turn. Herding 4 Hope, as in the case of conservation practitioners and scientists globally, therefore categorises livestock-wildlife conflict not only in terms of predation, but a total of four categories:
1.Predation
Direct loss of life or morbidity of livestock as a result of an attack by wild predators on livestock.
2.Disease
Loss of life or morbidity suffered by livestock because of an infectious disease transmitted either directly (direct or indirect contact) or via a vector (ex. tick or biting fly) from free roaming wildlife or a wildlife reservoir to susceptible livestock. OR, a disease transmitted similarly from livestock to susceptible wildlife that could threaten wildlife populations in various ways.
3.Competition for resources
The presence of both wildlife and livestock in areas where either continually, seasonally, or periodically animals compete for the same sources of forage and water.
4.Trade barriers
Due to the presence of wildlife, such as free roaming buffalo which carries the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus, in an area, the area is considered high-risk and subsequently zoned as either an infected or protection zone according to international disease control standards. People living with their livestock within such zones are subjected to trade barriers associated with disease control protocols that severely limit their market opportunities or any investment in market system development. It is one of the important contributing factors to the reason why many communities living in and around protected areas in southern Africa are some of the poorest.
If solving HWC, and particularly livestock-wildlife conflict, is viewed from this perspective that is generally also shared by communities and especially farmers, it goes beyond just solving predation. Predation, and in some instances disease transmission, are often event based and very visual, emotional and impactful whereas the other forms of conflict are more systemic in nature. Ultimately, the objective of Herding 4 Hope is not to help communities survive by helping to mitigate events of conflict, but rather to see communities and landscapes thrive by enabling overall wildlife-livestock coexistence. The Herding 4 Health model, as implemented through the Herding 4 Hope Team, was designed to not only address elements within the farming and conservation systems, but rather to help with transformations within the systems so that multiple systems in a landscape can integrate, coexist and be mutually beneficial. Such efforts work towards the ultimate rural development and biodiversity conservation objectives which are inclusive, sustainable and of benefit to both people and nature. Here, communities themselves are stewards and custodians of the health and biodiversity of the ecosystems in which they exist. To achieve this objective the Herding 4 Health Model was designed and facilitates the systematic empowerment of communities to overcome all forms of livestock-wildlife conflict and the overall lack of investment in community development through unifying all stakeholders behind a common vision and strategy that is achievable and sustainable.
To date, most of the plus 20 sites in six countries where the H4H Model is being implemented came of the back of years of investment to mitigate predation of livestock by free roaming carnivores. Typically, before long, those that implement such measures realise that for effective and sustained impact a more holistic, systems approach must be taken. A systemic solution is needed to effectively address a systems challenge. Through a systemic approach and the skills and tools the Herding 4 Health Model was designed to empower communities with, predation can be addressed very quickly and very effectively. Not only that, it also immediately offers multiple other benefits of similar importance to farmers. Most importantly, the Model offers the opportunity and strategy to overcome all of the forms of livestock-wildlife conflict. Farmers now view the effort as something truly about their livelihoods’ overall improvement and not only a narrow effort at solving a single problem but also unlocking new opportunities at the same time. Consequently, the overall relationship between land-users and stakeholders improves as trust is built ‘across the fence’ so to speak.
Another important advantage of the H4H Model and its more holistic approach is the fact that it offers multiple opportunities for co-investment. Typical efforts to mitigate predation are costly and the target of continuous aid to sustain the effort. With such an approach the donor audience is limited to donors that prioritize HWC mitigation or large carnivore conservation. However, through the H4H Model donors and investors interested in landscape restoration, rural development, job creation, skills development, or poverty alleviation and even enterprise development are accessible to co-fund the HWC mitigation and biodiversity conservation efforts. The reason being that the Model empowers best farming practices at farmer level in ways that turn the risks and challenges such as predation, disease transmission, and rangeland degradation, into opportunities to overcome challenges and unlock prospects to develop and investment in communities and their value chains. This is realized most notably through a system of proper herding and mobile, predator-proof kraaling by skilled herders deployed through and by the communities.
Skilled herders, selected from the communities by the farmers, are the change agents in a community because they deploy the necessary skills daily to inform and execute decisions related to wildlife-livestock conflict, rangeland management, and herd health and productivity. Three tiers of training prepare the skilled herders to turn the suite of risks farmers face into opportunities and unlock new development pathways, such as market access. Skilled herders actively avoid contact with large predators during the day and at night kraal animals in mobile predator-proof bomas where they themselves continue to guard them. It is the presence of man that makes all the difference. Livestock is not unattended anymore and become active restoration and crop fertilization agents in the landscape. Skilled herders enable basic herd health through primary animal health care skills and proper record keeping and reporting. They avoid contact with disease-carrying wildlife which cannot be guaranteed by fences alone. Low stress animal handling techniques improve animal behavior, quality, and condition. They facilitate planned grazing across seasons to actively rest and regenerate degraded areas, and to improve intact areas further. The records of compliance with these best practices and the effect on the herds and the land itself can now unlock market and enterprise opportunities, either not needed or feasible before. These include red meat market access, carbon investment, and even community-based equipment maintenance, seed harvesting, and stock remedy supplies.
