Chobe national park decongestion strategy

Abstract

This paper posits on issues dealing with aspects of sustainable use of natural resources through conservation of biodiversity in Chobe National Park (CNP). Chobe national Park is located in the northern part of Botswana within the Chobe district covering an area of 10 590 km2 and is arguably one of the country’s premier conservation. It was created on 14th July 1960 as a game reserve and this was later upgraded to become the first national park on 31st August 1967. CNP is the second largest park in Botswana and has one of the greatest concentrations of game found in the African continent. A major feature of CNP is the elephant population currently estimated at around 120 000. The park comprises four distinct ecosystems/thematic areas; Chobe River Front with floodplains and thick teak forest, Savuti marsh in the west, the linyanti swamps in the North West and the hot dry winter land in between.