Mophat Phiri

We are please to report that from 19th – 30th November and 10th – 15 December 2007, the project team organised and conducted 14 sensitisation meetings. The team held these meetings with local people living in the project area, government officials in all departments responsible for natural resources management, schools pupils, teachers and members of the Mpumalanga Mining Association.

The main aim of the visits was to sensitise local people, government officials and the Mpumalanga Mining Association about this bat project, its object and to solicit their support on the implementation of project activities as it is community driven.

In total, 1,083 people participated in these meetings and were sensitised about the project and its objective. Ninety-seven (97%) of the people who attended the meeting were happy with this project and openly informed the project team that they would support them in the implementation of project activities.

From 7th – 19th February and again from 6th – 16th April 2008, the project team organised and conducted 12 public lectures and sensitization meetings (Fig.1) on the importance of bats and why it is important to live with them and protect them from malicious killing. One thousand three hundred and sixty-three (1,363) pupils, 108 teachers, 27 government officials and 320 members of the Mpumalanga Mining Association benefited from lectures conducted as people were informed that bats are important because they:

Facilitate pollination in plants, including some important economic crops;
Eat harmful insects which transit various diseases to man, livestock and pets;
Facilitate dispersal of seeds thereby reducing competition among plants of same species; and
Eat harmful pests of crops which could cause huge damage to our harvests and cause economic losses.

Implementation of these activities have created awareness and imparted knowledge in local communities and stakeholders on the importance of bats. Further, the activities have changed people's perceptions as many people see bats as their enemies and nuisance creatures.

We are pleased to report that from 13th – 26th July 2008 and again from 20th- 31st October 2008, the project team developed and produced 5,500 posters and 10,000 leaflets (see photo) on the importance of bats in both English and local languages. These education materials were distributed to 18 schools, local communities and stakeholders in the project area and other parts of South Africa. In addition, two radio and two television programmes on the importance of bats were broadcasted on SABC 3. The main aim of these programmes was to make people aware of the importance of living together with bats and why it is important to protect them and conserve their roots.

One of the great impacts of this activity is moral and technical support that the project team has received from the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism as their two members of staff have joined us in the implementation of the project. Secondly, at least 90% of the population of South Africa has received relevant information on bats and why it is important to protect them.

The Project team is pleased to report that from 19-30 January 2009 and also from 16-28 February 2009, we visited 23 villages located around Mpumalanga Gold Mines where 16 advice-giving meetings were held with local communities and stakeholders (See photo).

The main objective of the meetings was teach them on the importance of bats, brainstorm and lobby them to form active working groups which will assist in conservation and protection of bat species in the area. We are pleased to report to report that 15 active working groups have been established. Women have also taken active part this programme as they have formed their own groups. The main task of these groups is to rehabilitate and restore the destroyed and vandalised habitats, roosts and caves of threatened bat populations in the area.

Read about the activities undertaken and findings of this project in the final report below.