The plan to build a tarmac road through the Northern Serengeti National Park in Tanzania has been axed by the Tanzanian Government after a barrage of criticism from Conservation organizations. The Governments aim had been to connect the remote towns and communities near Lake Victoria, in the North West of the country, with the countries ports on its Indian Ocean coast.
However the two lane highway was shown in studies to offer a serious threat to the indigenous wildlife, some estimates showing a reduction in wildebeest numbers from over 1 million to 300,000. This fall would have been caused by the creation of a tarmac barrier, as well as the volume of heavy vehicle expected to use the road. There was also the possibility of fences being erected which would have formed a physical block the animals could not have passed.
The wildebeest migration that happens every year between the Serengeti in Tanzania and the Masai Mara in Kenya is one of the greatest wildlife spectacles on earth, with over 1 and a half millions animals making the journey in search of fresh grazing. The migration is vital not only for the animals, but also for the landscape and grasslands which have been formed by the actions and movements of these animals for millennia.
The Tanzanian Government changed their plans after a long campaign of pressure from many groups, including the World Heritage Centre. Their new plans, announced by their Tourism Minister Najib Balala, involve diverting the road into the south of the Park to the town of Mukoma to minimise the impact, while still creating
much needed access to an underdeveloped and poor area of the country. The Organisation that has led the campaign, Serengeti Watch, have said that “a battle has been won.”
Many arguments for the diversion of the road were based on the importance of the Serengeti in tourism, one of the most vital industries in Tanzania. A visit to the Serengeti is a highlight of most Tanzanian safaris, its world-renown and excellent game-viewing based on its wide open grasslands and peaceful seclusion. The new road would threaten this and give poachers easy access to the main wildlife areas. To balance this, the Government argued that the North Western areas were some of the poorest in Tanzania and the road was vital to help develop them. The southern, diverted road will be longer, but seems a sensible compromise that will help preserve this wonderful wildlife wilderness.
