Transboundary Conservation: The Politics of Ecological Integrity in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park*

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed the emergence of an ostensibly surprising coalition of interests around the notion of Transboundary Natural Resource Management (TBNRM) in Southern Africa. Deep green 'bioregionalists', conservation biologists and neo-liberal development advocates have found common cause in espousing the re-establishment of ecological integrity across 'artificial' frontiers and administrative boundaries. TBNRM has effects far beyond the realms of biodiversity protection and 'natural resource management'. It is bound up with regional debates on national sovereignty, land reform and poverty alleviation. This article explores the ideological, political and economic rationales for TBNRM with particular reference to Zimbabwe's involvement in the flagship Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park initiative, spanning Zimbabwe, South Africa and Mozambique. It investigates the competing agendas, and points of conflict surrounding the initiative at global, national and local levels, and explores the potential impact on agrarian livelihoods.