The SADC Secretariat together with the SADC TFCA Network convened SADC Ministers of Environment, international delegates, conservationists, traditional authorities as well as various other relevant VIPs to reaffirm SADC efforts towards regional integration through the establishment and development of TFCAs across the region. The event took place on October 3rd in Johannesburg, South Africa, during CITES CoP17 that lasted from September 24 until October 4, 2016. The world witnessed an auspicious moment when the Zimbabwean Minister of Environment, Water and Climate, Oppah Muchinguri, signed in for the TFCA Network Newsletter on the SADC TFCA website as the first subscriber and thereby pronouncing the newly developed website officially launched.  SABC live broadcast the event on Channel 404.

The SADC TFCA Website or TFCA Portal (www.tfcaportal.org) is a comprehensive resource for practitioners and the general public alike on TFCA facts, figures and news. The portal provides  a wide range of TFCA relevant information. TFCA Practitioners, partners, researchers, decision makers and communities can from now on contribute to share their experiences and seek information on the experiences of others related to TFCA development. The TFCA Portal opens an opportunity for the general public to take a virtual  tour into all 18 TFCAs of the region offering information and tools on TFCA management, nature, culture, communities, as well as tourism related news and activities.

Following the TFCA Portal launch, and still on live stream, the SADC Ministers of Environment present at the event reaffirmed the importance and relevance of TFCAs for regional integration and their commitment to TFCA development by signing a map showing all of the 18 TFCAs in the SADC region. To date six ministers signed the map, a very important message of support to  the TFCA community. The South African Minister of Environmental Affairs Edna Molewa reiterated that the establishment of TFCAs “as a means of jointly managing natural resources across political boundaries has rightly been described as one of Africa’s greatest success stories.”

On behalf of SADC Secretariat, Dr. Margarete Nyirenda, Director  of SADC Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (FANR) directorate underlined that SADC participated in CITES CoP17 speaking as a regional block with one common interest of being granted the right to sustainably harvest and utilize the region’s natural resources for the benefit of communities and overall development of SADC. She added that the SADC TFCA Website serves as a platform where SADC Member States can share information about issues as well as decisions taken by CITES which directly have a bearing on the TFCA programmes and policies.