ZAMBIA general information

Safari hunting in Zambia

“Half of Zambia’s 34 gazetted GMA’s should be considered depleted. The GMA’s that still contain significant wildlife populations are either part of the Kafue system, the Luangwa valley system or one of the major wetland areas.”
Hugo Jachmann –‘ Zambias Wildlife Resources – A Brief Ecologogy’ 1987

Zambia’s best hunting grounds are essentially those GMAs surrounding the 2 major national parks of Zambia, the Luangwa in the north-east and the Kafue in the west.

Many of Zambia’s National Parks, 19 in total, do have GMAs surrounding them where safaris are conducted however due to the size of the Kafue and Luangwa park systems, the GMAs surrounding them are of key interest to the hunter.

Zambia’s hunting grounds are divided into geographically demarcated concessions called GMAs (Game Management Areas) which are leased to Zambian registered Safari Operators / Outfitters on a 5, 10 and 15 year basis. These GMAs are scattered throughout the country mostly concentrated around the two major National Parks, the Luangwa Valley and the Kafue region.

The GMAs are classified by the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) into Prime, Secondary and Depleted status depending upon the quality and numbers of game perceived to exist in the area as well as its size, past records and traditional status within the industry.

Naturally you can guess what this classification means and you can use it as a general rule of thumb. The prime concessions are going to have better numbers of game, usually better trophy quality and also to an extent, more professional and experienced outfitters.

The secondary concessions may not necessarily mean far less game numbers or an inferior hunting experience. It has to do with the size and location of the GMA, the quota allowed and the number of classical safaris the concession can generate.

Depleted areas are seen as those which need a lot of anti-poaching and redevelopment work but do still have viable and harvestable populations of certain species of game. Successful hunting does take place in depleted GMAs however safari hunting rates should reflect this.

This grading of the GMAs has been carried over from the previous hunting era (pre ZAWA days) and does not seem to follow a scientific classification method. It makes sense that the status of a concession should rely heavily upon accurate data of the populations of huntable species and their annual regeneration. However the method used seems to lean more towards the maximum economic benefit an area is perceived to hold and graded according to that. Bear in mind that both ZAWA and the local communities desire greater income from their natural resource so their perception of the number of animals is skewed by this need.

The nature of Zambian hunting with its unfenced open wilderness experience, make the above factors paramount to a successful hunt. This grading of the concessions, although intended as an indicator sometimes does not portray the exact status of a GMA you might be considering.

To say all prime GMAs are equal is not true and this is the essence of hunting in Zambia, not all concessions are created equally and you have to choose one that has been producing consistent results within the last 3 years.