Tanzanian policymakers have indicated in a recently published report by the East African that they expect the Tanzania hunting industry to play a significant role in the overall economic growth of the country in the coming year and, to this end, newly formulated rules have been established to help extract an additional USD 30 million from the sector.
Experts have reportedly predicted that the Tanzania hunting sector will earn approximately USD 53 million annually, which represents a dramatic increase from the previous earnings of USD 20 million annually and which brings the sector closer to being one of the country’s largest foreign exchange earners.
According to Ezekiel Maige, the Minister of Tanzania Natural Resources and Tourism, because of the huge potential of the hunting industry, the new rules have been specifically geared to help it make as large of an economic contribution as possible.
Within the revised hunting rules and guidelines, five categories of hunting areas have been established based on the number and type of animals to be hunted by tourists, the overall size of the areas and the availability of wildlife resources so as to guarantee a diversity of animal species and a sustainable tourist hunting experience.
Additional factors that contributed to the process of creating the five categories include the accessibility of the hunting area with regard to its terrain and the existing infrastructure leading from Dar es Salaam and Arusha as well as the reliability of the area’s water supply and the extent of human activity within the area.
According to the Minister of Natural Resources and Tourism, Mr. Maige, the boundaries of each proposed hunting area will be defined by a Global Positioning System (GPS) based on their individual potential for wildlife recovery during a set time frame and investment period.
In addition to creating the five categories of hunting areas, the new hunting guidelines will also raise the licensing fee for the country’s top hunting areas from USD 27,000 to USD 60,000 a year.
According to the new guidelines, category I has 24 hunting areas with a licensing fee of USD 60,000; category II has 98 hunting areas with a licensing fee of USD 30,000; category III has 18 hunting areas with a licensing fee of USD 18,000; and categories IV and V each have eight hunting areas with a licensing fee of USD 10,000 and USD 5,000, respectively.
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