AFRICAN INDABA

A Key Communication Element 

In the past communications between hunters and non-hunters on African conservation and hunting issues were mainly ad hoc, opportunistic and to a large extend reactive from the hunters’ side. 

Outcomes from consultancies, case studies or projects, workshops, government initiatives, etc do and did influence and/or alter hunting/conservation relationships and decision making. Hunting and conservation challenges impact numerous stakeholders. The distinct lack of organized information distribution disseminating the hunters’ perspective to a wider audience and the hunters’ lack of knowledge of what is happening on the conservation front is seen as serious impediment to stakeholder cooperation. 

Hunting Organizations need to address emerging and high priority conservation/hunting challenges expeditiously. Effective communication and dialogue with individuals, organizations, universities, wildlife colleges and media outside the hunting circle is as important as communicating hard facts, problems and solutions to the worldwide hunting community. African Indaba has therefore identified target audiences on individual, organizational and government level. African Indaba will regularly 

·         summarize and distribute hunting and conservation related information in a transparent manner

·         raise the public profile of African Safari Hunting

·         foster dialogue with non-hunting conservation practitioners

·         promote conservation partnerships

·         promote an understanding of the linkages between incentive based conservation, hunting and poverty relief for rural people

·         sensitize non-hunting conservation organizations for the rewards and challenges of African Safari Hunting

·         sensitize hunters for the challenges of African biodiversity conservation and the situation of the African people. 

African Indaba articulates problems, identifies linkages and emerging issues, spells out key messages, assists in establishing new partnerships, and promotes lessons learned from cutting edge conservation & hunting challenges. African Indaba is an important communication tool to raise the profile of African Safari hunting, a platform to share information, report and discuss strategies and projects between national government authorities, leaders from local African and international NGOs, researchers in the field, individual hunters and international hunting organizations. It is also a cost-effective tool to build useful stakeholders’ networks and promote joint action in important issues.  

African Indaba is distributed world-wide, 6 times a year, by email, e-messaging and the web as well as limited hard copies for those without internet access. Besides hunters and hunting organizations, African Indaba targets specific audiences outside the hunting circles and provides cutting-edge information for both.