More fences to drop between Kruger and Mozambique

The second phase to drop fences between the Kruger National Park (KNP) and Mozambique and create the world's largest transfrontier park, begins this month.

Conservation authorities will remove three more sections of the Kruger's eastern boundary fence, allowing animals to enter into the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique.

"This is an on-going project to remove all fences that limit the free-flow of animals, and to create one of the world's richest animal kingdoms," said Kruger spokesperson Raymond Travers.

Potential contractors interested in submitting tenders to remove the sections of fence are invited to a site visit at Punda Maria rest camp on Wednesday.

Tenders will be awarded on 21 April to contractors.

Conservation authorities in both countries agreed to remove a further 50km section of the fence this year.

The core transfrontier park is planned to boast a total area of 35 000 km2 uniting a patchwork of existing national wildlife reserves in South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

It will be built around the Kruger in South Africa, Limpopo National Park in Mozambique, and Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe.

No date has been set yet for the removal of the fence between the Limpopo National Park and Gonarezhou National Park, however.

Additional private and community-owned reserves and conservancies will be merged into the park at a later stage, bringing the total area to 100 000 km2.

An earlier programme to drop the fence stalled due to financial and logistic hitches, including indications that many of the elephants that were herded across the border had since returned to their traditional ranges in the Kruger.

The Kruger has already committed itself to a three-year US$20 million game translocation programme, while the World Bank and various other international development agencies are helping with the relocation of affected communities and funding the construction of infrastructure.

Once open, tourists will be able to drive freely across the international borders of all three countries within the boundaries of the park.