Progress Hoped for Protection of African Vultures
2017/10/13
On Tuesday 3 October, Dr. Paul Kariuki Ndang'ang'a of BirdLife International Africa Partnership Secretariat (Nairobi, Kenya, Contact: kariuki.ndanganga@birdlife.org) and Ms. Chaona Phiri of BirdWatch Zambia (Contact: birdwatchcsef@gmail.com), a partner of BirdLife International, visited Mr. Hidenobu Sobashima, Ambassador of Japan to Zambia.
Dr. Ndang'ang'a explained to the Ambassador that BirdLife International hopes that at the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals to be held in Manila, the Philippines from 23rd to 28th October, a recently developed Multi-species Action Plan to Conserve Africa-Eurasian Vultures will be adopted. The plan covers 15 vultures species of which nine can be found in Africa. He also informed the Ambassador that BirdLife International and other collaborators will host a side event in Manila on Tuesday 24 October, during the Conference.
Ms. Phiri briefed the Ambassador on the activities of BirdWatch Zambia, including a new program to monitor vultures across the southern border of Zambia in cooperation with an international NGO, the Endangered Wildlife Trust. This is being achieved by the use of telemetric units (both GSM and Satellite tracking devices) that have been put on 3 vultures to monitor their movements. In addition to that, BirdWatch Zambia is also in consultation with the Zambian authorities for possible installation of bird divertors on a electricity transmission line being developed in the Northern Part of Zambia to better protect vultures; a species that has been a victim of electrocution from collisions with power lines.
Ambassador Sobashima appreciated their reports and expressed his hope to continue such exchanges of information and views with them.
Dr. Ndang'ang'a explained to the Ambassador that BirdLife International hopes that at the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals to be held in Manila, the Philippines from 23rd to 28th October, a recently developed Multi-species Action Plan to Conserve Africa-Eurasian Vultures will be adopted. The plan covers 15 vultures species of which nine can be found in Africa. He also informed the Ambassador that BirdLife International and other collaborators will host a side event in Manila on Tuesday 24 October, during the Conference.
Ms. Phiri briefed the Ambassador on the activities of BirdWatch Zambia, including a new program to monitor vultures across the southern border of Zambia in cooperation with an international NGO, the Endangered Wildlife Trust. This is being achieved by the use of telemetric units (both GSM and Satellite tracking devices) that have been put on 3 vultures to monitor their movements. In addition to that, BirdWatch Zambia is also in consultation with the Zambian authorities for possible installation of bird divertors on a electricity transmission line being developed in the Northern Part of Zambia to better protect vultures; a species that has been a victim of electrocution from collisions with power lines.
Ambassador Sobashima appreciated their reports and expressed his hope to continue such exchanges of information and views with them.