Rongai Forest Farm in danger of extinction from jumbos
September 20, 2021
20
Sep 2021
Correspondent
Kilimanjaro
News
The Guardian
Rongai Forest Farm in danger of extinction from jumbos
RONGAI Forest farm in Rombo District, Kilimanjaro Region is in danger of extinction due to its destruction by elephants’ herds.
The warning was given here at the weekend by the Chief Conservator of the farm administered by Tanzania Forest Services Agency (TFS), Joel Naasi, who added that the trees that have been extensively destroyed by the jumbos are those of cypress type used for timber.
He added that the beasts have destroyed huge swathes of the forest farm in Kamwanga and Endoneti areas.
Naasi was submitting his report on the forest’s destruction to the Association of Local Authorities of Tanzania (ALAT) for Kilimanjaro Region during its inspection visit at the forest farm.
“This challenge is perplexing for us, we have never experienced such destruction, and we have been using every method to prevent the beasts from further destruction of the farm. Even monkeys have begun its destruction.
“Now, due to the threat, TFS in collaboration with wildlife wardens from Kilimanjaro national Park has begun making patrols to chase away the jumbos, but also to educate Maasai pastoralists to step staking their herds into the farm,” he said.
Whilst deep inside the forest farm, Naasi told ALAT members that the farm has planted 450,000 seedlings which they expected to cultivate during FY 2021/2022.
He said in FY 2020/2021 they expected to collect more than 3.3m/- in government revenue and by June this year, they had collected more than 4.36m/-.
Among others, in FY 2019/20 the Rongai Forest farm contributed 3,000 trees to the communities surrounding it.
The villages included Kibaoni, Nayeme, Nesae, Msangai, Mbomai, Kikelelwa, Irkaswaa and Kamwanga in Rombo District.
RONGAI Forest farm in Rombo District, Kilimanjaro Region is in danger of extinction due to its destruction by elephants’ herds.
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