By Mutuso Dhliwayo and Hazel Tariro Chimbiro
The Business of Conservation Conference (BCC) aims to catalyze economic development through the sustainable utilisation of wildlife resources by convening influential leaders to collaborate in ways that promote and unlock the potential of the wildlife economy. It also aims to change the narrative about conservation to one where conservation and development are not seen as mutually exclusive but are sustainably aligned and where conservation is recognised as being everyone’s business and an economic opportunity for the continent. BCC 2026 took place from 4th to 7th March 2026 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Despite decades of increasing the number of protected areas, there is a decline in biodiversity. This is due to a number of reasons that include climate change, mining in protected areas, clearing of land for agricultural and settlement, the increase in human wildlife conflict and environmental degradation. This requires change in the way we think and talk about conservation, and this was reflected in the theme of the BCC 2026 which was “Changing the Conservation Narrative: Everyone’s Business”. This resonates very well with Zimbabwe Environmental Law Organisation (ZELO)’s practical experience and institutional focus based on its new strategic plan (2025-2030) themed “Sustaining Organisational Growth in a Changing and Unpredictable World.”
Much of ZELO’s work has centered on demonstrating that conservation outcomes are inseparable from governance systems, legal frameworks, and economic realities. Through initiatives such as developing constitutions for community conservancies, advising on Trust Deed amendments, conducting community consultations on legal frameworks for community conservancies, and contributing to national policy processes including the Zimbabwe Biodiversity Economy Report, ZELO has consistently engaged in conservation not as an abstract environmental ideal but as a matter of rights, institutions, incentives, and sustainable livelihoods. The recent recognition of Community Conservancies within the Parks and Wildlife Amendment Act, 2025 further reflects this evolving narrative, while highlighting the continued need for regulatory clarity and institutional design. In this respect, ZELO’s work aligns directly with the conference’s central proposition that conservation is not a standalone sector, but a governance, development, and economic concern requiring cross-sectoral engagement and its focus on investing in community governance.
Conversations at BCC 2026 focused on how people can change the conservation narrative, including new and innovative approaches to ensure positive, sustainable change. Many valuable ecosystems around the world are managed and protected by local communities and Indigenous peoples. However, these ecosystems and the knowledge required to manage them are under increasing pressure from powerful economic interests such as the expansion of agriculture, mining and infrastructure. It was clear from the discussions, that empowering local communities is not just an option but the best strategy for preserving Africa’s large landscapes.
On the 5th of March 2026, ZELO took part in the BCC Think Tank session “Are we neglecting investing in community governance for conservation”. ZELO represented by Hazel Tariro Chimbiro, a Legal officer and the Land and Natural Resources Programme Unit Lead shared experiences from working with community conservancies in Zimbabwe and the critical role that investment in governance plays to ensure biodiversity stability, wildlife economy viability and tangible community benefits. She highlighted that conservation initiatives are often framed as ecological or funding challenges. Field experience and business modelling, however, tell a different story. She emphasized that conservation and wildlife economy efforts struggle because governance arrangements, institutional design, and legal frameworks are weak, contested, or economically misaligned.
ZELO’s experience
ZELO operates at this critical foundation layer ensuring that conservation landscapes, community conservancies, and biodiversity-based enterprises are supported by credible governance and legal systems. Recent field research, business modelling, and planning work undertaken within the Southeastern Lowveld and Save Valley and Mid Zambezi Valley ecosystems reveal consistent structural constraints affecting conservation sustainability. These include fragile or absent governance structures, weak constitutions and internal regulatory systems, contested or poorly designed Trust Deeds, investor sensitivity to tenure and regulatory uncertainty. These findings reinforce a central lesson that biodiversity stability and wildlife economy viability depend heavily on governance systems and legal architecture. Without governance reforms and regulatory alignment, even biodiversity-rich landscapes face declining viability. ZELO’s work in legal frameworks, policy engagement, and institutional design therefore functions as an investment-enabling mechanism rather than a compliance exercise. ZELO’s comparative advantage lies in strengthening the enabling environment for conservation by:
- Designing and formalizing governance systems (constitutions, internal policies)
- Advising on Trust Deeds and institutional restructuring
- Supporting legal frameworks for community conservancies
- Addressing tenure-related risk factors
- Enhancing regulatory and policy coherence
- Bridging governance gaps that undermine biodiversity and investment outcomes
Donor investments in conservation, biodiversity economies, and wildlife enterprises often assume functional governance systems. Field realities demonstrate that governance weaknesses frequently undermine otherwise sound projects, institutional instability erodes conservation gains and legal ambiguity creates risk for both communities and investors. Supporting governance and legal system strengthening therefore enhances biodiversity protection outcomes, institutional durability, investment readiness and community legitimacy and benefit stability. ZELO’s experience positions the organization as a credible technical resource in these domains. Conservation landscapes are long-term institutional projects. Their success depends on governance credibility, legal certainty, and economically coherent rules. Strengthening governance and legal systems is therefore foundational to biodiversity stability, community benefit models, and sustainable wildlife economies. The Zimbabwe National Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resource Use (CAMPFIRE) Stakeholder’s Review conducted in 2018 emphasized the need to improve community governance structures that will enable communities to take full responsibility for managing, using, sustaining, and benefiting from the diverse range of natural resources, including cultural and heritage resources, on their land.
What needs to be done for investment in community governance to be prioritized
During the discussions at BCC, it was agreed that investment in community governance requires the following:
- There is need to understand community needs
- Legislation must clearly prioritize investments in community governance by conservation actors
- There is need to raise awareness to investors on the need to invest in governance
- Investment and development projects should include a mandatory allocation for community governance strengthening, similar to the way budgets are set aside for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
- Clear indicators and core elements of good governance must be defined and integrated into project/investment design to establish measurable standards and guide effective governance support.
Conclusion
Attending the BCC was a very enriching experience creating an opportunity for learning and building relationships for ZELO which are critical for our biodiversity conservation and community led conservation programs. In the spirit of advocating for and promoting community led conservation, ZELO will host a Convention on the Future of Community Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) in Southern Africa. The Convention will bring together different actors in the natural resources management sector, including communities, government stakeholders, experts, civil society organisations, the private sector and community-based organisations. The Convention will be institutionalized as an annual event to facilitate continuous knowledge exchange, policy dialogue, and scaling of best practices, thereby reinforcing both sustainability and national-level impact. The discussions will include lessons learnt from the varied and complex history of Zimbabwe’s main CBNRM project, the CAMPFIRE and the need to ensure a successful progression of environmentally and socially just CBNRM in Southern Africa.