Mozambique: Wild animals a problem for Sofala residents

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Mozambique: Wild animals a problem for Sofala residents

6:10 CAT | 18 Jun 2024

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: VOA]

Residents of six districts in the Mozambican province of Sofala have recently complained about wild animals, especially elephants and hippos, killing people and devastating agricultural fields.

In the most recent attack, a pregnant woman was killed by an elephant at her home in the village of Zimuala, in Machanga district.

Francisca Ripundo, a local resident, says that the atmosphere in the region is tense and desperate, especially at night.

“We live in uncertainty. Our children and all of us were born in this area, but now with these animals it is complicated, there is a risk of death. Even inside our own homes, spending the night is difficult,” Ripundo complains.

Machanga district administrator Natália Chivambo says that the hippopotamus population has tripled in recent years in the region, and is a protected species.

She highlights that man-animal conflict is not new in the district. “In 2022, we had lions circulating and we had an elephant, but then the situation was brought under control,” she says.

According to Alaijh Mudluli, a wildlife specialist assigned to the provincial department of Territorial Development and Environment, 68 people were attacked by wild animals province-wide in the first quarter of this year, 28 of whom died.
Mudluli explains that the disturbance of animal habitats through deforestation, mining and forestry exploitation may be the cause of this conflict.

“Wild animals normally live in very calm places, without any disturbance. There are cases in which elephants themselves leave their conservation areas for settled areas in search of food and water, among other reasons,” he says.

For environmentalist Manuel Jorge, there is a need to draw up land use plans at district level, so that the human population is not allowed to settle in areas destined for the protection and conservation of flora and fauna.

Stressing that many people live in protected areas, Jorge says that this “contributes to the occurrence of conflicts. The ideal would be to confine wildlife, especially problem animals, in certain areas where the human population would not be allowed to settle”.

Source: VOA Português