the Aqua Bengal Delta one of the most
vibrant wetlands on the planet could be
in danger of disappearing from deep in
the my humble forest highlands of Angola
flow the surface water that feeds the
cui toe and Cubango rivers these vital
waterways flowing down from the hills
and converging at angola’s southern
border then form the larger akka bengal
river which crosses the Kevon go east
region of northern namibia and continues
into Botswana’s Kalahari Desert every
year 2.5 trillion gallons of life-giving
water flows from Angola through Namibia
to Botswana and there preserves what
could be called one of the world’s
largest inland Delta a seas teeming with
wildlife like hippos elephants and
african fish eagles wear these priceless
waters begin the forests have remained
untouched and largely undeveloped in a
tragic twist of the 27 years of civil
war that ravaged Angola and drove people
from the region
the upper reaches of the rivers are
still laced with landmines mines that in
Angola have killed thousands and injured
up to 80 thousand people since 1961
war has left a treacherous landscape in
its wake and thus kept the forests
largely safe from timber harvest in
agriculture this allows crystal-clear
water filtered by sandy soils to create
one of the world’s most pristine and
productive wetlands albeit two countries
away besides being something of a
paradise for Buffalo
baboons crocodiles and all manner of
other creatures the Delta also plays
host to some 100,000 tourists a year in
safari lodges and camps driving one of
Botswana’s top industries now with the
civil war fading into the past
developers are circling around the
Angolan Highlands eager to take
advantage of its riches through
hydroelectric dams irrigation projects
and other development that could
compromise this vital flow of water
what’s more while roots along the
waterways retain moisture and sediment
more and more of the forests along the
banks is being cleared with fire
for river access hunting and subsistence
crops but these pressures growing the
urgency has never been greater to
preserve the upper reaches of these
rivers to save the Delta
enter the Okavango wilderness project an
intrepid expedition team supported by
the National Geographic Society which is
using scientific discovery a detailed
data collection to build a powerful case
for the ecosystems protection over the
course of eight survey expeditions so
far the team has traveled over 4,000
miles by foot bicycle and mokoro a
traditional canoe their goals to
discover endemic species conduct the
first source delta surveys and the
tricky but crucial business of informing
conservation strategies across political
borders after all does Angola benefit
from sustaining Botswana’s thriving
tourism business or can Botswana tell
Angola not to develop their own
industries maybe through cooperation
they can both come out ahead the team
works in collaboration with Angolan
officials to conduct this exceptional
study of the cuido and Cubango rivers
noting wildlife and human presence alike
so far the team has already identified
24 possibly new species to science this
will all be essential data in the
pivotal conversations to come what are
some of the options for valuing the
priceless gift of water that in gola
renders to its southerly neighbors for
one the cuite land Cubango could support
a growing ecotourism industry in Angola
or perhaps the Botswana government will
find that paying Angola to keep the
water flowing is a necessary price to
save its jewel in the desert saving the
Okavango Delta will ultimately require
the investment and collaboration of at
least three countries Angola Botswana
and Namibia in order to ensure that this
fragile ecosystem can function as a
whole one thing is certain now time is
running out
without vigilant conservation efforts
like those of the Aqua Venga wilderness
project one of the world’s wondrous
wetlands may not survive
[Music]
