Skukuza – Farmers and community members living near the Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga, South Africa, have been living in fear since early April after lions began escaping through damaged sections of the park’s perimeter fence and entering surrounding communities.
The Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) and Kruger National Park (KNP) convened an urgent meeting on Friday, 1 May 2026, at the Sphelanyane Community Hall in the City of Mbombela to address the growing human-wildlife conflict. The meeting brought together leadership from the Provincial People and Parks structure and affected farmers from Sphelanyane, Buyelani, Mvangatini, Luphisi and the Lubambiswano Forum.
The lions have been getting out through sections of the perimeter fence that have been left in a porous state, worsened by vandalism linked to poaching activities. The situation has been further complicated by farmers interfering with carcass evidence left behind by the animals.
The Kruger National Park delegation was led by Lucia Hlatshwayo from the Socio Economic Transformation unit, who acknowledged the concerns raised by farmers and community leaders and committed the park to working alongside affected communities to resolve the situation.
“We welcome your concerns, and Kruger National Park is currently reinforcing sections of the fence that have been tampered with due to illegal poaching activities. We further request community members to report any sightings of wild animals within community areas to MTPA without delay,” Hlatshwayo said.
She also warned community members against tampering with the fence themselves, saying such actions contribute directly to poaching and increase the risk of further human-wildlife conflict.
MTPA Biodiversity Executive Manager Nomcebo Kunene urged farmers and community members to report any incidents of livestock predation without delay, saying prompt reporting would allow response teams to track and manage problem animals more effectively.
“Communities must assist us by reporting all incidents on time so that we can dispatch our response teams swiftly. The theft and damage of fencing remain a significant challenge, not only for Kruger National Park but for other nature reserves as well,” Kunene said.
She also encouraged communities to observe and respect buffer zones around protected areas as a preventative measure against future incidents.
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