The Arusha Manifesto & the History of Tanzania National Parks

This is a famous speech spoken by former President of the United Republic of Tanzania, Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere about sixty (60) years ago, noticed the integral part wildlife plays in this country. The speech laid the foundation for conservation in post-independent Tanzania and made the History of Tanzania National Parks.

The survival of our wildlife is a matter of grave concern to all of us in Africa. These wild creatures amid the wild places they inhabit are not only important as a source of wonder and inspiration but are an integral part of our natural resources and our future livelihood and well-being. In accepting the trusteeship of our wildlife, we solemnly declare that we will do everything in our power to make sure that our children’s grandchildren will be able to enjoy this rich and precious inheritance. The conservation of wildlife and wild places calls for specialist knowledge, trained manpower, and money and we look to other nations to cooperate with us in this important task - the success or failure of which not only the continent of Africa but the rest of the world as well.

Establishment of Tanzania National Parks

The history of Tanzania National Parks began when The Tanganyika National Parks Ordinance CAP [412] of 1959 led to the establishment of the organization currently known as Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA), and the first national parks to be under TANAPA was Serengeti As we read this article, TANAPA is governed by the National Parks Act Chapter 282 of the 2002 revised edition of the Laws of the United Republic of Tanzania. Conservation in Tanzania is governed by the Wildlife Conservation Act of 1974, which gives power to the Government to establish protected areas and outlines how they are organized and managed. National Parks represent the highest level of resource protection that can be provided. By 2019 on September, TANAPA had about 22 national parks, covering approximately 99,306.50 square Kilometers as presented below:

No	National Parks	Size (Km2)	Year of establishment and GN number	Location
1	Serengeti	14,763	1951 GN 12	Mara, Arusha, Simiyu
2	Lake Manyara	648.7	1960 GN 505, 2009 GN 105	Arusha, Manyara
3	Arusha	552	1960 GN 237, 2005 GN 280	Arusha
4	Ruaha	20,300	1964 GN 464, 2008 GN 28	Iringa, Dodoma & Mbeya
5	Mikumi	3,230	1964 GN 465	Morogoro
6	Gombe	71	1968 GN 234, 2013 GN 228	Kigoma
7	Tarangire	2,600	1970 GN 160	Arusha, Dodoma & Manyara
8	Kilimanjaro	1,668	1974 GN 56, 2005 GN 258	Kilimanjaro
9	Katavi	4,471	1974 GN 1	Katavi
10	Rubondo Island	457	1977 GN 21	Geita & Kagera
11	Mahale Mountain	1,577	1985 GN 262	Katavi & Kigoma
12	Udzungwa Mountain	1,990	1992 GN 39	Morogoro & Iringa
13	Saadani	1,100	2005 GN 281	Pwani & Tanga
14	Kitulo	413	2005 GN 279	Njombe & Mbeya
15	Mkomazi	3,245	2008 GN 27	Kilimanjaro & Tanga
16	Saanane Island	2.8	2013 GN 227	Mwanza
17	Burigi -Chato	4,707	2019 GN 508	Kagera & Geita
18	Ibanda-Kyerwa	298.6	2019 GN 509	Kagera
20	Nyerere	30,893	2019 GN	Lindi, Pwani & Morogoro
21	Kigosi	7,460	2019 GN	Kigoma, Tabora & Geita
22	Ugalla river	3,865	2019 GN	Tabora

Main Activity of Tanzania National Park

From the history of Tanzania National Parks the core activity of the TANAPA organization is to sustainably Conservation of national parks. Nature-based or wildlife tourism is the main source of earnings that is rewarded back for management, regulation, and fulfillment of organizational activities.

It has all mandate to manage and regulate the use of areas reserved as National Parks in such a way the country’s heritage is preserved for current and future generations.
Other Functions of TANAPA

Protection of natural resources, park facilities, and tourists visiting the parks;
Ecological and wildlife health monitoring;
Tourism development ; and
Community involvement in conservation efforts

Legal Instruments Governing TANAPA

The TANAPA, a parastatal organization, is governed by several instruments, including the National Parks Act (Chapter 282 of 2002, Revised Edition) and the Wildlife Conservation Act No. 5 of 2009. Also, it adheres to the National Policies for National Parks in Tanzania (reviewed in 2013), the five-year Medium Term Strategic Plan (MTSP), parks' specific General Management Plans (GMPs), and the Development and Lease Agreement Procedures (DALP). TANAPA also complies with other pertinent national laws and policies, ensuring comprehensive governance and management of national parks in the country.

Parks' Resources Protection, Visitors & Facilities

Among the responsibilities of TANAPA is to ensure security and a safe environment for visitors, park inhabitants, wildlife, and park infrastructures. Though security is the responsibility of everyone, the Organization has rangers who are directly responsible for the security activities. To ensure the task is done well, rangers are equipped with the right skills to run their duties, various kinds of training are conducted and equipment procured to ease their tasks. Training focuses on wildlife protection, strategic field patrol methods, intelligence-gathering operations, and the use of modern intelligence and security equipment.

Monitoring and Management of Ecosystem Health

Tanzania's National Parks boast diverse habitats and wildlife. Continuous monitoring assesses ecosystem health. Weather parameters are observed year-round. Regular wildlife censuses track populations and trends. Environmental audits identify issues in visitor facilities, with development projects subject to Environmental Impact Assessments. Wildlife health is closely monitored, and invasive species are mapped and eradicated. Early burning preserves herbivore forage, and research with the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute is encouraged.

Support and Conservation Education to the community & Collaborators

Community plays a big role in conservation, TANAPA values the efforts done by the community towards conservation, thus various approaches are adopted to provide conservation education to various conservation stakeholders. Also, the organization extends financial support to communities bordering national parks for the implementation of community development projects through Support for Community Initiated Projects (SCIP). These projects aim at education, health, transportation, and water supply. Another project called the TANAPA Income Generating Project (TIGP) has been launched. The aim is to effectively contribute to poverty alleviation for the communities living around the national parks.

The TANAPA appreciates the role played by sister institutions in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism and others in helping it to achieve its mandate. In reciprocation of the efforts, TANAPA extends the required support to such institutions. Some of these institutions are the College of African Wildlife Management (MWEKA), Pasiansi Wildlife Training College, Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI), and Tanzania Tourist Board (TTB).

Development and Promotion of Tourism

TANAPA, stakeholders, and the government of Tanzania cooperatively keep on promoting tourism activities in the country. The last and most well-known promotion is the tourism documentation The Loyal Tour acted by the president of Tanzania Dr. Samia Suluhu. The Organization continues to embrace tourism as its main source of revenue for its operations. For that reason, TANAPA continues to ensure that more tourism products and activities are developed and promoted to diversify the tourism experience in the parks. Analysis indicates that newly developed tourist activities have a significant contribution towards park value and enhancing visitor experience and satisfaction.

As the marketing strategy, they continue to promote the country’s tourist attractions both locally and internationally. To promote domestic tourism, TANAPA continues to build affordable accommodation facilities in the parks and encourages the private sector to invest in the provision of logistic services targeting the local market. Improvement of tourist facilities in the parks and their surroundings is also emphasized.