National Wildlife Research Institute gets high-tech tracking and monitoring equipment from USAID

By Hazla Omar On Mar 4, 2024

The United States Agency for International Development has provided the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute, which operates from Arusha, with state-of-the-art wildlife monitoring equipment.

The suite of technology which was handed over to the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI) ranges from aircraft fuel pumps and portable communications systems to trackers, Global Positioning (GPS) units, and sophisticated elephant collars.

“Through the USAID Tuhifadhi Maliasili (Preserve Natural Resources) project, the United States government is providing its important mission of conservation monitoring in critical landscapes of Tanzania,” said Nathan Sage, the USAID-Tanzania Environment Team Leader.

“The equipment which also includes a high-powered Predator Helios computer, represents more than just an investment of 242 million Tanzanian Shillings. We are happy to partner with TAWIRI on other research, including climate change projections for key habitats with the US Department of Interior,” added Mr Sage.

“It also represents a shared commitment to harness data, understand the importance that wildlife has for human development, and most importantly, promote conservation science for the benefit of future generations-especially Tanzanian girls and boys.”

Sage pointed out that Tanzania possesses a wealth of biological resources, including wildlife that holds significant cultural, economic, educational, and intrinsic value.

“Tanzania’s natural landscape including savannas, forests and coasts, magnificent as they are, is worth noting that the biological resources provide food, water, clean air, a stable climate, and livelihoods, as well as supporting more than half of global Gross Domestic Product,” Sage maintained.

The event was held in sync with the 2024 World Wildlife Day.

“The World Wildlife Day theme which states; ‘Connecting People and Planet: Exploring Digital Innovation in Wildlife Conservation,’ highlights the critical role that digital innovation plays in wildlife conservation efforts, and how it manages and reduces human-wildlife conflict,” added the USAID-Tanzania Environment Team Leader.

For over 60 years, USAID has partnered with the Government of Tanzania to ensure that biodiversity is conserved so people and nature can thrive.

Nathan Sage the USAID-Tanzania Environment Team Leader (Right) with the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute’s Director General, Dr Eblate Ernest Mjingo (Left) and the TAWIRI Board Chairperson, Dr David Manyanza (Center), during the handling of Wildlife Monitoring equipment from the United States, in Arusha.

In receiving the equipment, the TAWIRI Director General, Dr Eblate Ernest Mjingo said the donation comes at the right time as the institution prepares for future wildlife census activities.

“Our old pieces of equipment are starting to wear out and in need of replacement,” Dr Mjingo revealed.

On his part, the TAWIRI Board Chairperson, Dr David Manyanza said the facilities will also come in handy in a series of zoological researches that the national institution has been undertaking in the country.

“At the moment we are working hard to study animal behavior, especially factors that contribute to their population increase in some parts and decrease in others,” stated Dr Manyanza.