The Okavango region is sub-divided into Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) and Controlled Hunting Areas (CHAs). The Wildlife Conservation Policy of 1986 proposed the division of all the districts in Botswana into Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) and Controlled Hunting Areas (CHAs).
The concept of WMAs in Botswana arose from the need for conservation and controlled utilisation of wildlife outside national parks and game reserves, along with the desirability of creating buffer zones between protected areas and human settlements. WMAs are therefore zones between protected areas and surrounding areas especially human settlements.
The primary land use option in WMAs is wildlife utilisation and management, other types of land use are permitted provided they do not prejudice the wildlife population and their utilisation. WMAs were further sub-divided into Controlled Hunting Areas (CHAs) which become the “unit of production.”
CHAs are sometimes referred to as concession areas and are leased out by different companies for tourism purposes. CHAs are therefore administrative blocks used by DWNP to allocate wildlife quotas or leased out for photographic tourism. Botswana is divided into 163 CHAs which are zoned for various types of wildlife utilisation (both consumptive and non-consumptive uses), under commercial or community management. In communal areas, CHAs are zoned around existing settlements and those under community management are designed to benefit the local people.
The Okavango Delta, one of the most biodiverse regions in the world, consists of several CHAs. There is a total of over 30 CHAs in the region. These areas are spread across the Delta and adjacent regions, covering vast tracts of land where wildlife populations are managed through quotas and regulations. Some CHAs are leased to community trusts, while others are managed by private operators or the government.
The primary objective of CHAs in the Okavango Delta is to ensure that wildlife utilization is sustainable while contributing to conservation and local economic development. CHAs were designed to: Regulate Hunting Activities; Promote Conservation, Support the Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) programme; and generate Revenue for Conservation through fees collected from hunting licenses and permits are often reinvested in conservation efforts, anti-poaching initiatives, and habitat protection. In this regard, CHAs serve multiple purposes in Botswana’s wildlife management framework. Their primary function is to maintain a balance between conservation, economic growth, and traditional uses of wildlife.
In 2014, Botswana implemented a hunting ban, shifting the use of many CHAs from trophy hunting to photographic tourism. However, in 2019, the government lifted the ban, reinstating hunting quotas in some CHAs to manage rising wildlife populations and human-wildlife conflicts. Today, CHAs in the Okavango Delta continue to play a crucial role in Botswana’s wildlife conservation strategy.
Finally, Controlled Hunting Areas (CHAs) should be understood as designated wildlife zones in Botswana, including the Okavango Delta. In these zones, where hunting activities are regulated to ensure sustainable wildlife management and conservation. In addition, photographic tourism activities are carried out in these zones. These areas were introduced as part of the country’s broader conservation strategy, allowing for controlled hunting and photographic tourism to balance ecological needs, economic benefits, and traditional hunting practices.
