SCI Foundation Hosts Director Of CAMPFIRE Association To Address White House Council, Congressional Caucus
June 13, 2014
Washington, D.C. – This week, Charles Jonga, Director of the Community Areas Management Program for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) in Zimbabwe came to Washington as a guest of the SCI Foundation. He discussed the necessity of community involvement in wildlife management before the Presidential Advisory Council on Wildlife Trafficking (Advisory Council) and shared how hunting is an integral source of funding for CAMPFIRE programs. Additionally, Director Jonga addressed over 150 U.S. Congressional staffers at the International Conservation Caucus Foundation to inform policy makers on CAMPFIRE’s anti-poaching efforts, and to demonstrate the negative impacts created by the recent U.S. ban of elephant imports.
“The CAMPFIRE program benefits over 750,000 households across Zimbabwe. I was very thankful for the opportunity to speak, so that I could articulate just how severe an impact would occur if U.S. government policies continue to undermine our funding base,” Jonga said. “Organizations such as CAMPFIRE rely on American hunters as a primary revenue source to fund anti-poaching programs. The current ban will severely cut CAMPFIRE’s budget and our ability to protect elephants.” Read more
The 23 new officers now enter 18 weeks of field training partnered with more experienced conservation officers in the counties in which they have been assigned. The academy and ongoing support for the graduates is funded in the DNR budget through a General Fund appropriation approved by the Legislature and Gov. Rick Snyder. 
Overland Park, Kan. –