As more people become concerned about how their food is produced and want to reconnect with a rural lifestyle, Namibia’s communal conservancies offer great opportunities to meet Namibians who live off the land.

In the conservancies north of Etosha National Park, conservancy members plant fields of sorghum, maize and mahango, hardy plants which are dietary stables. Visit the north and talk to farmers to learn more about the cycle of planting, harvesting, storing and pounding these grains.

In the Zambezi region, farmers in several conservancies are practicing conservation agriculture, which offers higher yields and better cultivation of the soil. It is fascinating and it is happening alongside wildlife corridors – land that local community members are protecting for the benefit of wildlife movements.

In many conservancies where farming occurs, wildlife roams free. Living with wildlife has its challenges, but there are also opportunities to go beyond the guide book and explore what is authentic to tourism and conservation in Namibia. Human wildlife conflict exists because there are more lions, not fewer, and because there is more tolerance by local communities, not less. This is the side of the story that you can experience in Namibia’s conservancies.

Conservancies are all about people – their cultures, their rights and their responsibilities.  For more insight into Namibian cultures and ideas for planning your trip, visit our culture page.