Elephants wreak havoc in villages bordering wildlife conservation areas

By Lake Zone Watch Writer

Troupes of elephants are reported to be rampaging villages in Mara region, destroying food crops in villages bordering wildlife conservation areas, a situation which has caused untold suffering.

Reports from village and ward leaders say the number of elephants wandering in the villages seems to be increasing day after day.

“The elephants invasion will certainly result in hunger as most of the food crops have been destroyed. In April this year a man grazing his cattle was killed by an elephant,” said Andrew Mapinduzi Amos, the Nagusi Ward Councilor in Serengeti district.

According to Amos, the elephants have uprooted food and cash crops and at the same time threatening the lives of the villagers as they wander about during the night.

Reports had it that the youth in the affected villages are forced to spend sleepless nights in their farms in order to chase the elephants from their farms.

Ragita Ragita, the Kwihancha ward councillor in Tarime district, expressed concern about the danger posed by the elephants, villagers have lost hope of harvesting their crops as they have literally been destroyed by the jumbos.

“These animals have brought famine in our area. We have reported the matter to the authorities as the marauding elephants continue to destroy our crops. We must be compensated for the loss of our crops,” he said.

Mtiro Gekora, the village chairman of Park Nyigoti in Serengeti said a task force had been formed to chase the animals but the problem has persisted.

Large numbers of villages are prone to stray elephants in three districts of the Mara region. The districts are Serengeti, Tarime, and Bunda. The affected villages border the Serengeti ecosystem.