She’s popularly known as Newsbae, and whilst many knew her from the news hour, Rumbidzai Takawira is a wildlife conservation ambassador, working hard to promote conservation awareness with Wild Aid, an NGO active in promoting sustainable wildlife management practices. We caught up with Rumbidzai and featured her passion for wildlife in this article. 

How Important Is Wildlife To Zimbabwe’s Tourism Industry? 

Rumbidzai is a firm believer that wildlife plays an important role in Zimbabwe’s tourism because of how much it draws people from other countries, to come experience the wildlife Zimbabwe possesses. Zimbabwe is home to a very large herd of giant elephants, rhinos, pangolin and many more species, which attract visitors.

“Wildlife is the backbone of Zimbabwe’s tourism.”

What More Efforts Must Be Made Towards Conservation And Protection of Wildlife? 

From her experiences of going around wildlife reserves and communities, Rumbidzai says a lot of efforts are being made towards conserving wildlife. Of particular interest is the grassroots level approach to promote conservation. Communities living near wildlife reserves have been assisted to create community initiatives where they protect wildlife from poaching, set up centers where they can showcase their wildlife heritage, and from the returns, their communities can benefit in various forms including road, schools, and clinic construction, as well as creation of employment for the locals. Zimparks, CAMPFIRE and other NGOs have been working to educate communities living near wildlife to see it as a resource which they can use sustainably. 

She  insists that if communities benefit from the wildlife resources around them, then they will find themselves responsible for helping protect the wildlife. When they don’t benefit from it, they can actually participate in poaching and deplete the wildlife stocks. 

The ZERO TOLERANCE to poaching approach in Zimbabwe is something she applauds, and appreciates the efforts by Zimparks to ensure that parks are safe, and that those who are caught poaching are apprehended. 

She appeals that more influencer voices be raised to promote wildlife conversation. Influencers already have a following, and an audience, so when they speak to their audiences, encouraging them on conservation, they are more likely to be heard and understood. Globally, we are seeing influencers like sports stars, musicians, and artists coming up to raise their voices and promote conservation efforts. 

Is wildlife appreciated enough in Zimbabwe? 

Her observation is that there are various perspectives to the appreciation of wildlife. Those who live with wildlife or near it, have a love hate relationship because they can be victims of human-wildlife conflict. Wildlife can destroy crops, harm people or actually cause death, so people will see them as a menace. As much as these communities appreciate wildlife, the threat and danger that wildlife can pose to them will make them develop negative sentiments towards it. 

There is another perspective that wildlife is something that must be left to ZimParks, and more needs to be done to make people appreciate that wildlife is a national treasure which we must all cherish and enjoy. 

Some think that wildlife is something for rich people only. However there are places where people can view wildlife and enjoy moments in the outdoor with nature. 

“The bottom line is that wildlife is something that we can and must all enjoy. It’s not for some of us, but for all of us.

How do you balance work and travel? 

One of the best things to happen to a travel enthusiast is to have a job which takes them around places, and gives them an opportunity to travel. For Rumbidzai, her job has given her a great opportunity to experience the beauty of Zimbabwe, as she travels places to do her job. 

For those working in stationary places, then weekends will be the option they can make use of to travel. Here and there, make time to experience a new place, see things you’ve never seen before and do things you’ve never done before. 

Here and there, make time to experience a new place, see things you’ve never seen before and do things you’ve never done before. 

What are your favorite travel destinations? 

Gonarezhou which is home to wildlife. Nyanga a place of beautiful sights, the serene Mavhuradona Wilderness, and Hwange National Park which again is home to wildlife. 

What travel tips would you share with us? 

Make sure you plan for your travels in advance. 

Save up for your travels in advance. 

Don’t spend much on accomodation, spend much on activities. Instead of going for the most expensive accommodation facility, go for a modest one which saves you money, and spend more on activities because it is the activities you do which you will remember the most. 

From us here at Travel Zimbabwe, we join to share the message to stop poaching, and encourage everyone to play a part in saving wildlife.

For feedback and feature email tinashe@travelzimbabwe.co.zw