Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Conservation and Development Project

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The Maloti-Drakensberg Transfrontier Conservation and Development Project aims at conserving the global biodiversity of this distinct area, and, will contribute to community development through income generation from nature-based tourism. The components will: 1) finance bilateral collaboration through the establishment of a Steering Committee, National Project Coordination Committees, and coordination offices in South Africa and Lesotho. Joint technical working groups will also be established, to develop and implement action plans, focused on topics such as nature-based tourism, marketing, and management activities, while communication linkages will include a knowledge management system; 2) plan a strategic conservation, based on stakeholder consultation, and conceptual proposals for compatible land-uses. Conservation planning at the landscape level will be designed to facilitate bilateral involvement, and, a participatory bio-diversity monitoring system will ensure cross-boundary conservation, supplementing resources of the nature conservation agencies, to ensure sound planning, and actions; 3) ensure protected area planning for existing, and proposed conservation areas, through planning and zoning development, area management, and business planning; 4) manage conservation of existing protected areas, focusing on the control of alien invading plant species, and supporting through incremental costs, the rehabilitation of management roads, improvement of flora and fauna conservation, prioritizing on endangered species; 5) manage conservation of planned protected areas, following strategies as devised under component 4, prioritizing on the issue of overgrazing, and loss of wetlands; 6) involve community participation, emphasizing on targeted training in conservation, nature-based tourism, craft production, etc.; 7) develop nature-based tourism, emphasizing on community-focused capacity building, with the private sector providing managerial know-how, including capital for tourism development; and, 8) strengthen institutional development, supporting the emergence of local boards through the establishment of a structural modus operandi, and capacity building in the management of protected areas.