Staff Writer
Wildfires are becoming more frequent in Namibia’s Kavango East Region. One resident, Benita Makena Kaghuvi, is working to protect her forest and community.
“When I was younger, forest fires were rare,” says Benita, seated under a false mopane tree in Cakuma village. “Now they are happening all the time. It’s not just the heat or the wind; it’s also how we use fire without thinking.”
Benita is 42 years old. She lives in the Muduva Nyangana Conservancy with her husband and five children. She has seen how wildfires have become a serious threat in recent years. What used to be occasional events are now yearly disasters. Fires damage food supplies, cut off income, and destroy the environment.
Each year, over 100,000 hectares of land are lost to fires in the region. Trees, edible plants, and pastures are burned. This affects how families eat and earn a living. “These fires don’t just burn trees,” says Benita. “They burn our income and our way of life.”
Fires are often caused by poor land management, uncontrolled hunting, and the spread of farmland. But communities are starting to take action. The Namibian Government, with help from the Dryland Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program (DSL-IP), is training residents to stop the damage. The project is called “Integrated landscape management to reduce, reverse and avoid further degradation and support the sustainable use of natural resources in the Mopane-Miombo belt of northern Namibia.”
In 2023, Benita was chosen to receive fire management training under the DSL-IP Namibia Child Project. The training was led by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and carried out with Namibia’s environment and agriculture ministries.
Benita and nine others from her conservancy learned how to create fire cutlines, locate high-risk zones, and work as a team. “We learned how to use the tools properly and how to keep safe while working. The training gave us confidence,” she says.
That same year, Benita’s team cleared 36 kilometres of firebreaks. By 2024, they had cleared another 56 kilometres. “It’s hard work,” she says. “But it means our homes, our farms, and our forests are safer.”
The project also helps people earn an income through sustainable activities. Benita now harvests Devil’s Claw, a plant used in herbal medicine. She sells it through a program that protects the environment. “With this income, I’ve paid for my children’s school needs and bought food,” she says. “This kind of support changes lives.”
Everyone in the conservancy takes part in the fire response. Villages work together. Teams include men and women, the young and the old. “Everyone in the conservancy feels responsible,” says Benita. “It’s not one person’s job to protect the forest—it’s everyone’s.”
Namibia’s forests face growing risks from climate change. But Benita believes her community can make a difference. “If the forest burns, we lose more than trees,” she says. “We lose our identity.”
Through its work, the DSL-IP Namibia Child Project is helping people restore their land and protect their future. One firebreak, one training, and one determined person at a time.
