The interns Maria Madalena Rangel, with a degree in Anthropology, and Dulce da Flora Simão, with a degree in Biological Sciences, had an initial induction into activities of the community sector and the priority actions to be undertaken, notably the community food security programme. This seeks to guarantee food for the households recently resettled from the interior of the park to the buffer zone and other localities in Mabote district.

During the first weeks of activities, the team accompanied the conservation agriculture project in the Maculuve community, where cassava cuttings were planted and irrigated.

One of the interns made her satisfaction clear, when she said how gratifying it is to be part of a programme which, on the one hand, undertakes activities to protect biodiversity, and, on the other, contributes to the development of the communities.

”Apart from irrigation, we made the households covered by the project aware of how to organise themselves so as to care regularly for the agricultural field, making sustainable use of the material provided by the Park”, said Maria Rangel, PLCM intern in the Zinave National Park.

The Zinave National Park is located in Mabote district, in Inhambane province, and covers an area of 400,000km². This Conservation Area has benefitted from BIOFUND support since 2018, through financing from Project Bee, for the protection of local biodiversity.