NAMIBIA: Caprivi Wetlands Paradise

The Caprivi Strip, now known as the Zambezi Region is a verdant paradise in the north east corner of Namibia. Katima Mulilo is the main town with Kongola, Bukalo, Linyanti and Ngoma being much smaller centres within the region.

The Mafwe and Subia are two main groups in East Caprivi, where Silozi (a Zambian language) is the lingua franca and only written indigenous language of the region. In the Bwabwata National Park there are 10 villages housing a majority population of Khwe San people, part of a much larger San (or Bushmen) population that extends from Botswana to Angola.

The continued residence of so many indigenous people in a state protected area is an unusual feature in Southern Africa and a testament to the Namibian government's commitment to co-management and benefit sharing.

The Zambezi Region has two of the five permanently flowing rivers in Namibia (the Zambezi and the Kwando, which have their catchments in Zambia and Angola). In years of heavy rainfall, these rivers flood over an extensive area. In fact up to a third of the Zambezi Region is floodplain. Two other rivers are often regarded as rivers in their own right - the Chobe and the Linyanti – but they are really extensions of the Zambezi and Kwando rivers respectively.


The Zambezi Region experiences a tropical climate and during dry winter months, large populations of elephant and buffalo are known to congregate along the Kwando, Zambezi and Chobe river corridors, making this time of year good for game-viewing.

Water flows in these rivers vary from year to year, depending on the rain falling in the catchments. The Caprivi Wetlands Paradise is situated in a malaria area and travellers are advised to take relevant prophylaxis, always use mosquito repellent at night and sleep under a mosquito net.

The Zambezi Region is Namibia’s bird paradise. It has varied habitats including broad-leafed and acacia woodlands, mopane forests, riverine forests, grasslands and floodplains, and therefore boasts more than 400 species of birds. The eastern floodplains and grassveld are accessible by 4x4 vehicles, but only at certain times of the year (May to November).

When the waters of the Zambezi and Chobe rivers are high you can visit parts of this area by contacting one of the lodges on Impalila Island or the staff from Impalila or Kasika conservancies for a local guide.

There are three state-protected game reserves on the Caprivi Wetland Paradise (see map for location); the Mamili, Mudumu and the Bwabwata National Park. Here, the limited road and infrastructural development adds a sense of adventure and wilderness. In the dry season (May to November), these parks are home to large herds of migratory buffalo and elephant.

Attractions in the wet season (December to April) include bird-filled pans fringed by water lilies and inhabited by hippo. Look out for the water-loving antelope – lechwe, reedbuck and waterbuck – in the floodplains. You may even see roan and sable antelope or a glimpse of the rare, semi-aquatic sitatunga found in the dense papyrus reed beds.

The Bwabwata National Park is located in the 200km stretch from the Kavango River to the Kwando River. Nambwa and Bum Hill campsites are located along the Kwando River in this park and have set a precedent in Namibia by being the first conservancy-owned and -managed tourist facilities in state protected areas. Mudumu and Mamili National Parks were proclaimed at Namibia’s independence in 1990 and are located south of Kongola.

Closer to Katima Mulilo town the habitat changes to mopane woodlands, where you can expect to find Arnot’s chat, white-breasted cuckooshrike and many species of woodpecker. After the rains these forests are really exciting when pools of water gather in the black, sticky cotton soils and attract numerous waterbirds, including migrants such as lesser moorhen, blacktailed godwit, great snipe and many more. About 20km east of Katima Mulilo take the Kalembeza road north towards Kalizo and Island View Lodges on the Zambezi River.

You can expect to see many raptors and grassveld species in this area, including Dickinson's kestrel and yellow-throated sand grouse. On the banks of the Zambezi River between the two lodges is a breeding site for carmine bee-eaters. Thousands of these birds gather annually from September to November.


Birding in and around Katima Mulilo is brilliant. One can expect to see, among many others, African finfoots, African skimmers, African fish eagles and, if you are lucky, bat hawks on the Zambezi River. Birding in the gardens of the Zambezi Fish Farm, Caprivi River Lodge and around Katima Mulilo should produce specials like the Schalow’s turaco, trumpeter hornbill, coppery sunbird, eastern nicator, eastern bearded robin, Hartlaub’s babbler and western banded snake eagle. Night specials include pennant winged nightjars, wood owls, barred owlets and three-banded coursers.

As one leaves Katima Mulilo towards the west the state forests host some exciting birds too. These teak forests (Baikea plurijuga) host at least eight species of sunbird, including Shelley’s and purple banded. You may also be lucky enough to see the Stierling’s wren warbler, black-eared seed-eater (canary), broad-tailed paradise whydah and the northern grey-headed sparrow.

Travelling south-west from Katima Mulilo on the gravel road to the Mamili Game Park is a 4x4 adventure of its own. The Mamili Game Park borders Botswana and is a swampland with copses of large trees. The swamplands are filled by local rains and overflow from the Linyanti River. In this special environment, birding is very exciting. You can expect to see large numbers of pygmy geese among hundreds of waterbirds. This park also hosts a few pairs of resident wattled cranes and, if you are lucky, you may get a sighting of the uncommon Denham’s bustard.

NAMIBIA: Caprivi Strip

Village in caprivi flood plain

Caprivi, sometimes called the Caprivi Strip , Caprivi Panhandle, Okavango Strip, or Okavango Panhandle and formerly known as Itenge, is a narrow protrusion of Namibia eastwards from the Kavango Region about 450 km (280 mi), between Botswana to the south, and Angola and Zambia to the north. Caprivi is bordered by the Okavango, Kwando, Chobe and Zambezi rivers. Its largest settlement is the town of Katima Mulilo. It went through a civil war from 1994–1999. The strip is administratively divided between the eastern Zambezi Region and the western Kavango East Region.

Languages
Inhabitants of the Caprivi Strip speak a number of African languages: most of them members of the Bantu language family, although there is also at least one language in the northwest of the strip (on the Namibia/Angola border) which is a Khoisan language: Hukwe. The Bantu languages include Yeyi (or 'Yei' or 'Yeeyi'), Mbukushu, Gciriku (or 'Dciriku'), Fwe, Totela, and Subiya. Perhaps a majority in the Caprivi Strip, especially in the capital town of Katima Mulilo, speak Lozi as a lingua franca. Many also speak some English and Afrikaans.

Natural features
The area is rich in wildlife and has mineral resources. Of particular interest to the government of Namibia is that it gives access to the Zambezi River and thereby a potential trading route to Africa's East Coast. However, the vagaries of the river level, various rapids, the presence of Victoria Falls downstream and continued political uncertainty in the region make this use of the Caprivi Strip unlikely, although it may be used for ecotourism in the future.

Within Namibia the Caprivi Strip provides significant habitat for the critically endangered Wild African Dog, Lycaon pictus. It is a corridor for African elephant moving from Botswana and Namibia into Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe. National Parks found in the Caprivi Strip are Bwabwata National Park, Mudumu National Park and Nkasa Rupara National Park. Local communities have organised themselves into communal area conservancies and community forests. People work closely with the Namibian Government to jointly manage natural resources through several programmes set up between the Namibian Government and various donors.

History
German chancellor Leo von Caprivi de Caprera de Montecuccoli, who gave his name to the Caprivi Strip

Caprivi was named after German Chancellor Leo von Caprivi (in office 1890–1894), who negotiated the acquisition of the land in an 1890 exchange with the United Kingdom. Von Caprivi arranged for Caprivi to be annexed to German South-West Africa in order to give Germany access to the Zambezi River and a route to Africa's east coast, where the German colony Tanganyika was situated. The river later proved unnavigable. The annexation was a part of the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty, in which Germany gave up its interest in Zanzibar in return for the Caprivi Strip and the island of Heligoland in the North Sea.

In the late 20th century, the Caprivi Strip attracted attention as Namibia and Botswana took a long-standing dispute over its southern boundary to the International Court of Justice. The core of the territorial dispute concerned which channel of the Chobe River was the thalweg, the bona fide international boundary.

This was important, as, depending on the decision, a large island (known as Kasikili or Seddudu by Namibia and Botswana, respectively) would fall into national territory. The Botswana government considered the island as an integral part of the Chobe National Park, whereas the Namibian government, and many inhabitants of the eastern Caprivi Strip, held that not only was the island part of the original German–British agreement, but that generations of inhabitants had used it for seasonal grazing, for reed-gathering, and as a burial site. In December 1999, the International Court of Justice ruled that the main channel, and hence the international boundary, lay to the north of the island, thus making the island part of Botswana.

Politics
The Caprivi Strip is of politico-strategic military importance. During the Rhodesian Bush War (1970–1979), African National Congress operations against the South African government (1965–1994) and the Angolan Civil War (1975–2002), the Strip saw continual military action and multiple incursions by various armed forces using the Strip as a corridor to access other territories.

South African administration of South-West Africa recommended self-governance for the Caprivi, a plan that was partly realised in 1976 when the "Caprivi government" was formed and received its own flag, national anthem, and coat of arms.

Caprivi Conflict
The Caprivi conflict involved an armed conflict in Namibia between the Caprivi Liberation Army (CLA), a rebel group aiming for the secession of the Caprivi Strip led by Mishake Muyongo, and the Namibian government. Its main eruption occurred on 2 August 1999 when the CLA launched an attack in Katima Mulilo, occupying the state-run radio station and attacking a police station, the Wanella border post, and an army base. Namibian armed forces quashed the attempt at secession within a few days.