The south luangwa national park (slnp) is zambias premiere wildlife tourism destination, and the luangwa valley supports the countrys largest and most stable populations of elephants (80% - 14,000)…

The south luangwa national park (slnp) is zambias premiere wildlife tourism destination, and the luangwa valley supports the countrys largest and most stable populations of elephants (80% - 14,000) and lions (estimated at 700, one of 10 remaining continental strongholds), the countrys largest population of critically endangered african wild dogs (estimated at 400) and most of the countrys significant populations of big game, including hippopotamus, buffalo and the endemic thornicrofts giraffe. Because of its size, abundance of wildlife and growing human population adjacent to the park, the south luangwa valley (SLV) is an epicentre for poaching and wildlife trafficking. This is exacerbated by its geographical proximity to malawi, mozambique, and tanzania, making the SLV a key source and transit route for illegal wildlife products. The proposed project will work to address these challenges by enhancing csls capacity to support the department of national parks and wildlife (dnpw) to combat poaching and further develop CSL human-elephant conflict (HEC) mitigation interventions designed to reduce retaliatory killing of elephants and protect community livelihoods. The goal of this project is to safeguard the at-risk elephant population of the south luangwa valley. The objectives of this project are to 1) reduce elephant poaching through operational support for critical, specialised anti-poaching activities and 2) reduce HEC and legal killing of problem elephants through support for communities bordering the south luangwa national park. The key outcomes from these objectives are 1) effective and efficient law enforcement reduce the capacity for poachers to kill elephants 2) successful HEC mitigations reduce the need for legal killings of elephants by dnpw and 3) increased support for mitigating the impact on lives and livelihoods for communities living alongside elephants results in greater tolerance for and participation in wildlife conservation. The proposed project further builds on the successes seen through previous USFWS funded CSL work, and has been designed to respond to critical threats to elephants in the SLV as well as build capacity to mitigate against future threats, including growing HEC. Key proposed activities include: effective, year-round anti-poaching foot patrols and quick reaction force operations CSL K9 unit operations working in collaboration with the target team CSL aerial unit year-round aerial surveillance and targeted helicopter operations HEC rapid response unit (RRU) operations, providing 24 7 response to serious threats to human lives and livelihoods 30 chilli patrollers across 7 chiefdoms help farmers to protect their crops 40 farming households in nsefu install smelly fence HEC mitigation fencing 10 farming households in kakumbi trained in beekeeping to diversify their income and mitigate the risks of HEC 20 HEC community sensitisation roadshows held across 7 chiefdoms bordering the slnp production of HEC educational video content for community sensitisation activitiesthe expected results of this project are highly effective and efficient anti-poaching capabilities within the SLV, with enhanced strategic operations supported by specialized aerial, K9 and QRF units. The end state will be a highly effective and visible law enforcement presence in the SLV, capable of both continued deterrence, disruption, and investigation, and which increasingly integrates synergies between foot patrols, aerial support, QRF, and targeting teams. At a community level, people surrounding the slnp will benefit from an anticipated reduction in HEC from mitigation interventions, thus an increase in food security and ultimately fostering a greater understanding and improved support for wildlife conservation. The anticipated impact of the project will be a continued disruption and decline of elephant poaching within the SLV.