Zimbabwe Marks World Ranger Day 2025: Calls for Tech Investment, Ranger Welfare and Community Partnerships

Zimbabwe marked World Ranger Day 2025 with tributes to rangers, pledges of digital anti-poaching tools, stronger welfare, and community partnerships to protect its $1B tourism economy (image source)

Zimbabwe commemorated World Ranger Day 2025 with a belated ceremony in Mashonaland West Province, where government officials, conservation leaders, and First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa paid tribute to frontline rangers while pledging new investments in community-based conservation and digital security. The event, hosted by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Climate and Wildlife, came against a backdrop of rising wildlife crime and increasing pressure on natural resources.

Opening the commemoration, Mashonaland West Permanent Secretary for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Mary Jaji described rangers as “unsung heroes whose daily sacrifices safeguard our environment, wildlife, and future generations.” She emphasized that rangers operate under dangerous conditions—often under-armed compared to poachers—and called for greater recognition of their role in national security. “We must never forget that every rhino, elephant, or pangolin saved is because of a ranger’s vigilance,” Jaji said. “They deserve not only our gratitude, but also our full protection.”

Delivering the keynote address, Minister of Environment, Climate and Wildlife Nqobizitha Ndhlovu stressed that conservation must go hand in hand with community empowerment. He reaffirmed government support for the Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE), which channels tourism revenues back into rural communities. “No conservation programme can succeed without the buy-in of the communities living with wildlife,” Ndhlovu noted. “CAMPFIRE remains central to our strategy—ensuring local people benefit from wildlife as a renewable economic resource.” The Minister also underscored plans to embrace advanced digital technologies in anti-poaching operations, including drones, satellite surveillance, and smart radio communications. “We cannot fight 21st-century poachers with 20th-century tools,” he said.

ZimParks Director-General Fulton Mangwanya linked ranger work directly to Zimbabwe’s economic recovery, noting that wildlife-based tourism contributes over US $1 billion annually, nearly 10 percent of GDP. “Without rangers, there is no tourism; without tourism, there is no foreign currency,” Mangwanya said. He highlighted recent successes in reducing poaching incidents in Gonarezhou and Hwange National Parks, but warned that resource constraints continue to hamper operations. He appealed for stronger public-private partnerships to fund equipment, training, and welfare for rangers. “Corporate Zimbabwe has a role to play. Supporting rangers is supporting national development,” he said.

Guest of Honour First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa commended rangers for their courage while urging society to view conservation as a shared responsibility. She announced a new initiative to integrate wildlife education into school curricula, emphasizing the importance of instilling environmental stewardship in young people. “Rangers are guardians of our heritage,” the First Lady said. “But if we do not educate our children, we risk losing not only wildlife, but also our cultural identity and the tourism economy it sustains.” She also called on Parliament and donors to prioritize ranger welfare, including medical insurance and pensions. “When a ranger falls in the line of duty, the family must not be forgotten,” she said.

According to the International Ranger Federation, more than 100 rangers worldwide lose their lives annually, mostly in armed confrontations with poachers. Zimbabwe, home to the second-largest elephant population in Africa, remains a key battleground in efforts to curb wildlife crime syndicates supplying illicit ivory and rhino horn markets in Asia.

As the ceremony closed, participants laid wreaths in memory of fallen rangers. Officials pledged to make the 2026 commemoration more timely and to accelerate the rollout of new security technologies before year-end. “Conservation is not charity—it is investment,” Minister Ndhlovu remarked. “By safeguarding our parks, we are securing Zimbabwe’s economy, its communities, and its future.”