Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) (Tanzania)
The Committee recalled that at its last session it expressed serious concerns over the Tanzanian Government's new policy to open NCA to agriculture. The Committee was informed that, though Cultivation is continuing to spread, there appears to be some control preventing its random expansion. Nevertheless, the Committee remained concerned that the expansion of agriculture is taking away traditional pastoral lands of Masai who, as a last resort to ensure their own food security, are being forced to clear lands for subsistence agriculture. The NCA is the most profitable of all Tanzanian state enterprises earning approximately US$ 4.5 million annually, of which the local people receive only a marginal share at present.
Despite the concerns outlined above, the committee was satisfied to note that the NCA management and NCA Board are actively seeking solutions to the issues and are cooperating with IUCN in preparing a management plan. The Committee requested the Centre to write to the Tanzanian authorities, reminding them of the international significance of, and the interest in NCA and encourage them to take urgent measures, e. g. sharing tourism revenues, which will ensure the conservation of natural resources and the welfare of the Masai and minimize the need for cultivating land within the vicinity of NCA. The Committee requested IUCN to prepare, in cooperation with its Regional Office in Nairobi, a follow-up report on the state of conservation of NCA for its next session in 1995.