Members of the Game Rangers Association of Africa and other interested parties meet for the first time in Namibia on NamibRand Nature Reserve from 21 to 23 February 2006. Previous meetings in southern Africa were held in South Africa and Botswana. A few delegates are expected from as far afield as Great Britain.

The Game Rangers Association of Africa was founded in 1971 as a non-racial, non-political organisation. The Association does not prescribe to any conservation organisation, but works with these to the benefit of the people, the country and its rangers. The Game Rangers Association of Africa is a member of the International Ranger Federation and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

The mission of the Game Rangers Association of Africa is to ensure that those responsible for the future of conservation in Africa are dedicated, motivated, skills-trained, ethical and professional in the execution of their duties. Professionally, game rangers are wildlife managers and the field force in Africa, working at the "coal face" of conservation. Their tasks are multi-faceted and include research and monitoring, game capture and introductions, population management, burning programs, infrastructure and equipment maintenance, public relations, environmental education, community liaison and involvement, financial and human resource planning and administration. Theirs is often a difficult, dangerous and thankless task for which they receive very little remuneration or recognition and seemingly minuscule support both morally and financially. Many in the past have paid for their dedication with their lives and no doubt others will do so in the future.

·ensure that game rangers are adequately trained and equipped to carry out their primary responsibility of maintaining the integrity of the protected and other natural areas in which they work;

·contribute information and advice to those organisations which train game rangers to ensure that their training is appropriate and professional;

·represent present and past game rangers and their interests in order to ensure the highest standards and credibility of the profession.

On the first day of this unusual meeting in Namibia, delegates have the opportunity of listening to, exchanging ideas and meeting leading conservationists and environmental experts. They will be talking on a wide range of interesting and relevant subjects concerning the Namibian environment. The second day will be spent on a field trip to introduce many of the visitors to their first close-up encounter of the Namib and there is no better place to do so than NamibRand Nature Reserve. This private reserve of over 172 000 hectares, the largest in southern Africa, has seemingly endless plains, inselbergs, mountains and extensive dune fields. Huge herds of gemsbok, springbok and Burchell’s zebra and flocks of ostrich are regularly seen. Kudu, mountain zebra and steenbok are common. Even giraffe are present. Large predators include spotted hyaena and leopards. On the final day, the serious business of the Game Rangers Association, the AGM, will take place, when committee members will report on the various activities of the past year and plans for the future. It is the intention, during this meeting, to establishing a Namibian association.

Invitations have been sent to those ex-conservationists that could be traced and to all present rangers and wardens of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and other interested parties. Anyone who would like to attend can contact the organisers.

Peter Bridgeford and Marc Dürr

Phone 064-220443 or e-mail: pmbridge@iway.na