By Theresia Victor
Despite recent positive trends in the populations of black rhinos and African elephants, Tanzania’s wildlife is still far from fully restored. Dr Amani Ngusaru, WWF Tanzania Country Director, highlights that ongoing deforestation, water degradation, and the loss of marine resources continue to threaten both wildlife and human livelihoods.
Speaking at the launch of the Living Planet Report at the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) office in Dar es Salaam, Dr. Ngusaru emphasized, “We are not yet at a point where we can be confident that our wildlife is safe. Hence, we must intensify our actions, consume sustainably, and unite efforts to maintain ecological balance and meet the 2030 targets.”
As global biodiversity and climate summits like COP16 and COP29 approach, WWF is urging countries to develop and implement more ambitious national nature and climate plans. These plans should address overconsumption, biodiversity loss, and emissions reduction in an equitable manner to combat the crisis effectively.
“Africa is already committed to halting and reversing nature loss under the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and tackling climate change through the Paris Agreement. However, the WWF Living Planet Report 2024 warns that current national biodiversity strategies are falling short, with critical tipping points like coral reef degradation and deforestation looming,” Ngusaru cautioned.
The report reveals a staggering 76% decline in Africa’s monitored vertebrate wildlife populations from 1970 to 2020, driven by habitat destruction, pollution, and climate change. Globally, the decline stands at 73%. This trend poses a grave risk to food security, water resources, and climate resilience across the continent. Without immediate intervention, Africa’s ecosystems could pass critical thresholds beyond recovery.
Ngusaru emphasized the urgent need for coordinated action to prevent irreversible damage to Africa's ecosystems. "The loss of species such as forest elephants and gorillas would have catastrophic global consequences. We must rise to the challenge and act now."
WWF Tanzania Conservation Manager, Dr. Lawrence Mbwambo, also stressed the need for governments to unlock greater public and private funding. He urged that climate, nature, and sustainable development policies must be aligned and actionable on a large scale.
“It’s no exaggeration to say that what happens in the next five years will determine the future of life on Earth. We have five years to place the world on a sustainable trajectory before the combined negative impacts of nature degradation and climate change push us toward an unstoppable tipping point. The risk of failure is real, and the consequences are almost unthinkable,” he noted.