Biodiversity: The Unfolding Crisis

2021-2030 have been declared the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration. Africa is immensely rich in biodiversity. Its living organisms comprise around a quarter of global biodiversity and it supports the earth’s largest intact assemblages of large mammals, which roam freely in many countries[1]. Africa is a continent of contrasts. From the heat in Sahara Desert, to the coolness of the Great Rift Valley, to the mesmerising thunder of Mosi Oa-Tunya(Victoria Falls) which means the Smoke that Thunders in Lozi language of Zambia and is shared between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Mosi Oa Tunya is a UNESCO heritage site and is shared between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Africa is home to the Ngorongoro crater also a UNESCO heritage located in Arusha, Tanzania. The Ngorongoro Crater is the biggest inactive and intact unfilled volcanic caldera in the world[2].

If you want to watch the world’s largest terrestrial mammal migration come to the Serengeti shared between Kenya (locally known as Maasai Mara) and Tanzania. The ecosystem hosts the world’s largest terrestrial mammal migration. The ecoregion is divided into several game reserves and the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. Besides lions, 70 species of large mammals and 500 species of birds also live here. The landscape of the Serengeti is varied and features grasslands, woodlands, riverine forests, swamps[3]. Between January and March nearly 260,000 zebras, 1.7 million wildebeest, 470,000 gazelles, and other plains game begin migrating. By about February, these animals start grazing on the short grass plains of Serengeti’s southeastern section and give birth to about 500,000 calves[4].

One cannot speak about Africa without mentioning Mt Kilimanjaro and Lake Victoria- the second largest fresh water lake in the world[5] .Additionally, Sahara Desert is the world’s 3rd largest desert , still located in Africa. Despite being home to a huge chunk of the world’s flora and fauna, Mama Africa’s biodiversity is slowly shrinking. The main culprits being mankind and the negative impacts of climate change. Biodiversity is very important for the African continent because it is a sources of income through foreign exchange , source of food , continuity of culture , source of livelihoods and source of medicine through the diverse herbs found in forests and mountains. According to Panthera, cheetahs have been driven out of 95 percent of their habitat. Presently, they are only found in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, and South Africa. It is estimated that the overexploitation and degradation of the biodiversity ecosystems will result in the loss of 50% of Africa’s bird and mammal species, and 20-30% of lake productivity by the end of the century, as well as decline of wildlife and fisheries (UNEP-WCMC, 2016).

The extractive sector is doing its damage to the flora and fauna and many a times after prospecting the land is left bare and the prospectors move to another location. Water bodies are being polluted thanks to beachfront hotels; pollution is on the rise killing aquatic life including fish. Poachers across the continent are working harder than ever, killing animals, making species becoming extinct. The most endangered[6] species of animals in Africa according are pangolin, White rhino, Rothschild giraffe, pygmy hippo, cheetahs, African penguin, Ethiopian Wolves, Cuvier’s Atlas gazelle, Kynsna Seahorse and Mountain Gorilla. Other at risk animals include elephants who are hunted for their tusks. With the death of the last northern Rhino at Ol Pejeta conservancy in Kenya in 2018, the remaining two rhinos, a mother and a daughter are placed under 24-hour armed security. Cheetahs get hunted for their skin, which serves as beauty, chameleons in different parts of the world are viewed as medicine.

Biodiversity especially forests, rivers, mountains and springs are of  spiritual and habitat value to  indigenous people.For example among the Sengwer community- an indigenous forest dwelling community , forests their homes , sources of  medicine , a naming system ( in the community  some names are related to trees).For the Batwa , a forest dwelling community found in Uganda , Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo, in Uganda for example, this community has   been almost entirely dispossessed of their land by the combined pressures of government departments responsible for conservation, and cultivators, notably Bakiga, claiming land. They live in south-western Uganda in the districts of Bundibugyo, Kabale, Kisoro and Rukungiri. The Bwindi Impenetrable National Forest of Uganda was the home of the Batwa before they were evicted.[7]

In the current system, indigenous people, living in forests for years and having natural systems of protecting forests , rivers and lakes are getting evicted from their natural habitat to pave way for  extractivism which  more dangerous to the ecosystem. Examples include the eviction of the Ogiek[8], the Sengwer[9] and the Batwa people. Biodiversity is also lost during forest fires. Sometimes these fires are deliberate, other times they are accidental. In the infernos, species get killed and plant matter destroyed, for example the recent forest fire   on Mt Kenya[10].

Biodiversity plays a very important role through provision of food, water supply, and support for economic development. We live in a shared environment and what happens in one part of the world has indirect impact on what is happening in another part of the world. Each and everyone of us has a responsibility of protecting biodiversity, this is because Mother earth can be very vengeful when she is pushed beyond    her limits and when we protect biodiversity, we are not only doing it for the current generation but also for the future generations.

References 

[1] https://www.cbd.int/gbo/gbo4/outlook-africa-en.pdf

[2] https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-seven-natural-wonders-of-africa-...

[3] ibid

[4] ibid

[5] https://www.britannica.com/place/Lake-Victoria

[6] https://www.wantedinafrica.com/news/10-most-endangered-animals-in-africa...

[7] https://minorityrights.org/minorities/batwa/

[8] https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/mau-forest-evictions-leave-ogiek-h...

[9] https://redd-monitor.org/2020/07/15/forced-evictions-in-the-name-of-cons...

[10] https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2021-03-26/fire-breaks-out-in...