the richtersveld cultural and botanical landscape - SAHRA

THE 

RICHTERSVELD 

CULTURAL AND 

BOTANICAL 

LANDSCAPE 

APPLICATION FOR 

INCLUSION ON THE 

WORLD HERITAGE LIST 

January, 2006

Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape World Heritage Site Nomination 1 

APPLICATION FOR INCLUSION ON THE WORLD 

HERITAGE LIST 

THE RICHTERSVELD CULTURAL AND BOTANICAL 

Main Authors: 

Mr. Mark Thornton, EcoAfrica 

Dr. Francois Odendaal, EcoAfrica 

Contributing Authors: 

LANDSCAPE 

Ms. Annelise le Roux, Succulent Karoo Knowledge Centre, CapeNature 

Prof. Norbert Jürgens, BioCentre Klein Flottbek and Botanical Garden, University 

Hamburg 

Mr. Andrew Hall, Northern Cape Provincial Department of Sport, Arts and Culture


Contents 

List of Abbreviations 5 

Executive Summary 6 

1. Identification of the Property 13 

1.a. Country 13 

1.b. Province 13 

1.c. Name of Property 13 

1.d. Geographic Coordinates to the Nearest Second 13 

1.e. Maps 13 

1.f. Area of Nominated Property and Proposed Buffer Zones 14 

2. Description 15 

2.a. Description of Property 15 

2.a.i. Location 15 

2.a.ii. Buffer Zones 16 

2.a.iii. Potential Future Inclusions in the World Heritage Site 18 

2.a.iv. Overview of Climate and Geology 20 

2.a.v. Overview of Fauna 23 

2.a.vi. Flora of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 25 

2.a.vii. Cultural Landscape, Transhumance, Pastoralism and Architecture 48 

2.a.viii Traditional Nama Architecture: the |haru oms 52 

2.b. History and Development 

3. Justification for Inscription 72 

3.a. Criteria Under Which Inscription is Proposed 76 

3.b. Proposed Statement of Outstanding Universal Value 80 

3.c. Comparative Analysis 80 

3.d. Integrity and Authenticity 86 

4. State of Conservation and Factors Affecting the Property 90 

4.a. Present State of Conservation 90 

4.b. Factors Affecting the Property 90


4.b.i. Development Pressures 90 

4.b.ii. Environmental Pressures 92 

4.b.iii Natural Disasters and Risk Preparedness 93 

4.b.iv. Visitor / Tourism Pressures 94 

4.b.v. Number of Inhabitants within the Property and Buffer Zone 98 

5. Protection and Management of the Property 100 

5.a. Ownership 106 

5.b. Protective Designation 109 

5.c. Means of Implementing Protective Measures 109 

5.d. Existing Plans 118 

5.e. Property Management Plan 121 

5.f. Sources and Levels of Finance 124 

5.g. Sources of Expertise and Training 127 

5.h. Visitor Facilities and Statistics 129 

5.i. Policies and Programmes Related to the Presentation and 

Promotion of the Property 134 

5.j. Staffing Levels 137 

6. Monitoring 141 

6.a. Key Indicators for Measuring State of Conservation 143 

6.b. Administrative Arrangements for Monitoring Property 143 

6.c. Results of Previous Reporting Exercises 144 

7. Documentation 146 

7.a. Photographs, Slides, Image Inventory and Authorization Table 146 

7.b. List of Included Texts 146 

7.c. Form and Date of Most Recent Records 147 

7.d. Address Where Records and Archives are Held 147 

7.e. Bibliography 150 

8. Contact Information of Responsible Authorities 162 

8.a. Preparer 162 

8.b. Official Local Institution / Agency 163


8.c. Other Local Institutions 163 

8.d. Official Web Address 164 

9. Signature on Behalf of State Party 165 

Figures 

Figure 1: Broader Richtersveld Vegetation Units 26 

Figure 2: Biomes represented in the Broader Richtersveld 27 

Figure 3: Richtersveld Community Conservancy Vegetation Units 29 

Appendices 

Appendix A Maps 1-5 

Appendix B Feasibility Study for the Greater !Gariep Proposed World Heritage 

Site, 2004 

Appendix C Survey on the Traditional Architecture of the Namas of the 

Richtersveld, 2001 

Appendix D Management Plans of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

Appendix E Relevant Legislation and Policy Documents (as outlined in Section 

7.b) 

Appendix F Species List for Plants in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

Maps (located in Appendix A) 

Map 1: Map of Proposed Site within Republic of South Africa 

Map 2: 1:250,000 Topographical (ref:. 2816 Alexander Bay) demarcating 

Core Area and Buffer Zones 

Map 3: Map of Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

Map 4: Map of Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation Area 

Map 5: Map of Richtersveld Protected Areas


List of Abbreviations 

CBO Community Based Organization 

CPA Richtersveld Sida !hub Community Property Association 

DEA&T Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (South Africa) 

DLIST Distance Learning and Information Sharing Tool 

DMP Disaster Management Plan 

GEF Global Environment Facility 

ICOMOS International Council on Monuments and Sites 

IDP Integrated Development Plan 

IUCN The World Conservation Union 

LME Large Marine Ecosystem 

MoU Memorandum of Understanding 

NGO Non-governmental Organization 

NHRA National Heritage Resources Act 

NORAD Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation 

ORM Orange River Mouth 

RNP Richtersveld National Park 

SANParks South African National Parks 

SMME Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise 

TFCA Transfrontier Conservation Area 

TFP Transfrontier Park 

TIC Tourism Information Centre 

UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation 

VOC Dutch East India Company 

WHS World Heritage Site


Executive Summary 

State Party: Republic of South Africa 

Province: Northern Cape 

Name of Property The Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape 

Geographic Coordinates to the nearest second: 

Approximate Centre of World Heritage Site: Cornellsberg Mountain: 

28 36’ 00’’ S 

17 12’ 14’’ E 

Textual description of the boundaries of the nominated property 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is located in the northwestern corner of 

the Republic of South Africa, within the Northern Cape Province. It is 160,000 

hectares and is bordered to the north by the Richtersveld National Park, to the east 

by the Helskloof (Nababiep) Provincial Nature Reserve and to the south by the 

Richtersveld Communal Grazing Area. On its northeast border lies the Orange 

River which serves as the border with Namibia.


Statement of Outstanding Universal Value 

The Richtersveld has the highest botanical diversity and rates of endemism of any 

arid region representing more succulent flora than any other part of the world with 

plants exhibiting unique ecological techniques to enable them to survive in such an 

extreme environment, and a cultural landscape encompassing the two thousand 

year old transhumance pastoral livelihood of the Nama people and their sustainable 

use of and relationship with the environment of the Succulent Karoo Biodiversity 

Hotspot. 

These factors together converge to present a unique environment of one of the 

world’s most important sites for the conservation and study of succulent flora and 

the preservation of a livelihood which was once a common way of life throughout 

the world. 

Justification 

The recognition of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy’s biological 

importance by international conservation bodies is wide and strong. The Succulent 

Karoo, of which the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is a core area, is one of 

only 34 Biodiversity Hotspots, as recognized by Conservation International. It is one 

of only two to exist in a desert. It is one of only two to be based entirely on high 

floral richness, endemism and degree of threat. It is a cold mountain desert adorned 

with thousands of succulents which, under spring blossom, turn an arid expanse 

into a multi-coloured wonder. Endemic to the Richtersveld, almost all of the world’s 

population of Aloe pillansii, a flagship species for the region growing up to ten 

metres high, exists inside of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. It is a 

threatened species and one of few species believed to be decreasing as a direct 

result of climate change. But the most significant ecological feature of the 

Richtersveld is its succulent species numbers and endemism. It is well documented 

that the Gariep Centre of Plant Endemism has the richest variety of succulent 

plants (primarily the Mesembryanthmaceae family) on earth and the Conservancy is 

considered a central part of the Centre. 60% are known to be endemic just to the 

region, and estimates of species numbers and endemism rates are regarded as


conservative, since new species are being found and large areas remain unstudied. 

In years to come, it is certain that new species will be uncovered. The Gariep 

Centre and the Richtersveld are also considered important to science in regard to 

evolutionary processes, with many succulent groups in states of active speciation. 

From a cultural standpoint, the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is the last 

refuge of Nama people living a transhumance lifestyle. This occurs no place else in 

South Africa. It is also one of the few places in South Africa where the language of 

Nama remains widely spoken. It is the only place remaining where the Nama still 

reside in intricately constructed portable rush domehuts called |haru oms. It is also 

the only place left in South Africa where pastoral people reside in large communal 

traditional lands. What exists in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is an 

outstanding representation of human interrelationships with the environment, in this 

case a fiercely harsh environment, and a lasting testimony to a way of life – 

transhumance. The Nama’s pastoralist lifestyle is one of the earliest forms of 

livelihood where humans have control over the environment. The traditional 

management systems have over two thousand years conserved through 

sustainable use of the grazing resource a large area of Succulent Karoo vegetation. 

The details of these attributes – cultural and natural – of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy are highlighted in numerous documents pertaining to 

“filling the gaps” in the World Heritage list. These documents, by IUCN, ICOMOS 

and UNEP, reveal the Richtersveld Community Conservancy as a landscape, both 

naturally and culturally, which has several characteristics which are 

underrepresented in the current World Heritage list, and support the justification of 

this nomination. 

Criteria under which the property is nominated 

Cultural criterion (iv) 

The landscape of seasonal movements spanning back millennia illustrates 

effectively a period of time when the environment, the climate and the seasons 

determined largely where humans lived and how they lived. This has not changed


for the Nama who today must move home, livestock and family from high-country 

winter grazing areas to lower summer areas. The ancient gravesites, relicts of 

former livestock posts, migration trails, wells, petroglyphs and legend and oral myth 

attached to mountains, sinkholes, springs and, not least, the !Gariep (Orange) River 

all make up a cultural landscape that has been active for two thousand years. The 

Cultural Landscape of the Richtersveld demonstrates well the ability of the Nama to 

maintain traditional pastoral livelihoods without adversely impacting on the 

environment. This is especially important, perhaps more so than in other regions, in 

light of the status of their environment as a Biodiversity Hotspot. Additionally, the 

|haru oms is a form of architecture not reproduced by any other group of people 

except the Nama. Recognized as one of 100 endangered sites by World 

Monuments Watch, the |haru oms requires an intricate construction process and 

indigenous knowledge which has been largely lost in other Nama areas outside of 

the Richtersveld. The |haru oms in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

remain a part of the semi-nomadic lifestyle of the Nama pastoralists. 

Cultural criterion (v) 

As ancestors of the earliest inhabitants of southern Africa, the Nama of the 

Richtersveld have maintained a cultural tradition that is wholly unique in its customs 

and lifestyle. The Nama traditional transhumance land use of pastoralism bear the 

only surviving testimony to a way of life that formerly spanned amongst their 

KhoiKhoi ancestors from the Cape of Good Hope to current day Namibia and 

amongst other African peoples throughout the country. Despite the survival of this 

land use and age-old relationship with the environment, the Nama have faced and 

continue to face enormous pressure. Colonialism and institutionalized racism of 

Apartheid sought to eradicate cultural identity and tradition, often denouncing Nama 

ways as primitive and worthless. Today, the Nama identity and tradition endure and 

are seen most strongly in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. 

Natural criterion (ix) 

An unusual convergence of several extreme environmental factors in the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy area has resulted in biodiversity that has


evolved specifically in order to survive. Flora, in particular, have developed a wide 

variety of species and families which have speciated to exist in highly specific 

microenvironments. The methods used by plants for conserving water, shielding 

from the sun and protecting from high winds are seen in the physiology, range and 

relationship between species and their specific microenvironment. In some species 

such as the Aloe dichotoma the population densities differ between summer and 

winter rainfall zones. The Conservancy exists in the transition between these two 

rainfall zones and as such is a living laboratory of the Aloe dichotoma, as well as 

the Aloe pillansii, a near endemic to the Conservancy, and many other species. 

Natural criterion (x) 

The Succulent Karoo Region is a Biodiversity Hotspot, due to its extraordinary 

diversity and endemism rates and is home to an estimated 6,356 species of plants 

of which 2,439 are endemic. A 38.4% endemism rate is one of the highest in the 

world; 40% of the world’s 10,000 species of succulents are found in the Succulent 

Karoo; and over 63 genera of the Mesembryanthemaceae are endemic to the 

Succulent Karoo Region. The Richtersveld Community Conservancy represents the 

core of the biome’s Gariep Centre, which regarded as the richest with over 2700 

species and with 80% of its endemics being succulents. The Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy provides a transition between the summer and winter 

rainfall areas and a diversity of environments including mountains, quartz fields and 

valleys enabling a wide range of species to exist. It also serves as the refuge for 

nearly all of the known specimens of Aloe pillansii, a large, impressive and 

protected plant thought to be decreasing in numbers as a result of climate change. 

Name and contact information of official local institution/agency 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

Management Committee, Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

120 Main Street, Eksteenfontein, 8284 

South Africa 

Tel: +27-27-851-7082 / 7026


Fax: +27-27-851-7420 

E:mail: Joani@richtersveld.net 

gertlinks@lantic.net 

Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) (state party 

agency) 

Mr. Ntsizi November 

Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) 

Private Bag X447, PRETORIA 0001 

South Africa 

Tel: +27-72-678-0396 

E-mail: NNovember@deat.gov.za


1. Identification of the Property 

1.a. Country: Republic of South Africa 

1.b. Province: Northern Cape 

1.c. Name of Property The Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape 

1.d. Geographic Coordinates to the nearest second: 

Approximate Centre of World Heritage Site: Cornellsberg Mountain: 

28 36’ 00’’ S 

17 12’ 14’’ E 

1.e. Maps (please refer to Appendix A) 

Map 1: Map of Proposed Site within Republic of South Africa 

Map 2: 1:250,000 Topographical (ref:. 2816 Alexander Bay) demarcating 

Core Area and Buffer Zones 

Key to Map 2 (Topographic Map) 

1. Richtersveld Community Conservancy: Core Area 

2. Richtersveld National Park: Buffer Zone 

3. Nababiep (Helskloof) Provincial Nature Reserve: Buffer Zone 

4. Emerging Vioolsdrif Community Conservancy: Buffer Zone 

5. Communal Grazing Area: Buffer Zone 

Map 3: Map of Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

Map 4: Map of Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation Area 

Map 5: Map of Richtersveld Protected Areas


1.f. Area of Nominated Property (ha.) and Proposed Buffer Zones (ha.) 

Area of nominated property: 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy: 160,000 ha, approximately 

Area of buffer zones: 

Helskloof (Nababiep) Provincial Game Reserve: 10,980 ha 

Richtersveld National Park: 162,445 ha 

Richtersveld Communal Grazing Areas: 225,000 ha, approximately 

The Core Area proposed as a World Heritage Site is the land enclosed within the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy. The area is buffered by provincially and 

nationally gazetted protected areas, the Orange River (also an international border 

with Namibia) and the Richtersveld communal land, which is mostly grazing area. 

The Core Area is also buffered by significant physical features including the largely 

impenetrable Vandersterrberg Mountains (between the Core Area and the 

Richtersveld National Park), the deep canyons of the Orange River and the rugged 

mountains of the Nababiep (Helskloof) Provincial Nature Reserve. 

The high cliff walls on the Namibian side of the Orange River form a formidable barrier and buffer to 

the Conservancy


2. Description 

2.a. Description of Property 

General Description of the Property 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is South Africa’s first communal 

protected area and its most remote wilderness. It is a cold mountain desert of 

enormous scenic value and diverse and vivid geological formations of immense 

value to the heritage of the country and continent of Africa. However, the attributes 

which are of outstanding universal value and the focus of this nomination are its 

high diversity and endemism of plants, particularly succulents; its unique Nama 

culture, architecture and traditions; and its rich cultural landscape of semi-nomadic 

pastoralism representing one of the last transhumance 1 cultures left in Southern 

Africa. 

2.a.i. Location 

Core Area: Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy (hereafter referred to as ‘the 

Conservancy’) is a 160,000 hectare communally-owned and managed protected 

area located in the northwestern corner of South Africa along the border of 

Namibia. This is South Africa’s most sparsely populated and vastest unspoilt 

wilderness region. The Conservancy is situated in the mountainous region south of 

the clearly visible giant bend of the Lower Orange River (known as the !Gariep 

River 2 before colonial times, and a name that is progressively being re-instated) on 

1 The term, “transhumance” is used throughout the document to describe the lifestyles and livelihood 

patterns of the Nama herders. Semi-nomadic pastoralism can also be used to describe the seasonal 

movements of the Nama people with their herds of goats and sheep. However, the set seasonal 

patterns associated with the Nama movements between summer and winter grazing areas and the 

geographic scale associated with their movements are felt by the authors as best termed as 

transhumance. 

2 ‘!Gariep’ means ‘Big River’ in the language of the Nama, the first people who have settled in the 

region thousands of years ago. However, for the purposes of this document the name Orange River is 

used as that is the name that reviewers will find on maps available anywhere in the world.


its last stretch before it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. The Conservancy falls under 

the local governmental jurisdictions of the Richtersveld Municipality, the district 

jurisdiction known as the Namakwa District and finally, the Northern Cape 

Provincial Government. There are seven towns in the entire municipal area, and 

two of the smallest towns (Kuboes and Eksteenfontein) border the Conservancy on 

the west and south, respectively. 

Access to the Conservancy is on dirt roads, and approximately two hours from the 

main towns of the region: Port Nolloth (municipal headquarters) in the west and 

Springbok to the southeast. The interior part of the Conservancy is accessible by 

remote dirt roads and tracks, many of them only suitable for 4x4 vehicles. The 

landscape is rugged and many parts of the Conservancy remain unreachable by 

vehicle and in many places tracks have become impassable. The rugged 

landscape, remoteness from population centres and the absence of diamond 

deposits are what have preserved the Conservancy as South Africa’s most remote 

wilderness. The only people living in the Conservancy are semi-nomadic sheep and 

goat herders who live a transhumance lifestyle of moving with herds in between 

seasonal grazing areas. 

Please refer to the Map of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy (Map 3) and 

Topographical Map (Map 2) in Appendix A. 

2.a.ii. Buffer Zones 

The Conservancy is directly bordered by the following areas: 

Northern Buffer: Richtersveld National Park 

The Richtersveld National Park (RNP) boundary serves as the long northern border 

of the Conservancy. The boundary between the two is the most inaccessible area 

for both the RNP and the Conservancy and a largely impenetrable area of steep 

and rugged mountains. There are no roads into the area and it is used occasionally 

by semi-nomadic herders.


Eastern Buffer: Nababiep (Helskloof) Provincial Nature Reserve and the Orange 

River (and international border with Namibia) 

The Nababiep Provincial Nature Reserve is a rugged, uninhabited reserve of stark 

mountains and the deep Helskloof Canyon. The mountains extend eastwards 

beyond the reserve into the ERF 226, a very large property currently under the 

jurisdiction of the Department of Public Works but under discussion to be handed 

over to the Vioolsdrif Community for the creation of the Vioolsdrift Community 

Conservancy, largely modelled on the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. It is 

land unsuitable for most land uses except conservation and limited livestock 

herding and has only a few tracks in it that are suitable for 4x4 vehicles. 

The Orange River boundary is one of the most remote stretches of Orange River 

along its entire course from Lesotho to the Atlantic Ocean. There is no human 

habitation along this stretch of the river and most parts of the river remain 

unreachable from both sides because of the high mountain ranges that run along 

the river. There is currently one road which can access the river from the 

Conservancy’s side and it is seldom used, and then only by extreme 4x4 

adventurers. The Namibian side is mostly completely unreachable, as it consists of 

rugged ridges and high cliff walls several hundred metres high. 

Southern and Western Buffer: Communal Grazing Area 

The Richtersveld communal grazing area is a vast area where local people herd 

goats and sheep at very low densities due to the dryness and low grazing potential 

of the land. The permanent human population in the area is very small. Most people 

who use the area for grazing are inhabitants of the small villages of Kuboes, 

Eksteenfontein and Lekkersing, with a total combined population of 2,613 (2000 

statistics), and those who use the area number several hundred at most. The 

communal grazing area is owned by the Sida !hub Community Property Association 

(CPA) and is comprised of three main grazing areas: 

• The large traditional grazing area formerly zoned as Richtersveld ‘Coloured’ 

Reserve that will soon be transferred to legal ownership by the CPA while


still under the administrative authority of the Richtersveld Municipality, and is 

earmarked for grazing under a grazing plan to which local herders have 

agreed. 

• The Korridor 21 (also known as Corridor East) consisting of the former farm 

units: Klipbok (21/2), Ratelfontein (21/3), Kouefontein (21/4), Chebiesies 

(21/5/R and 21/11), Hapuseep (21/7), Soetwater (21/6), Hardevlakte (21/8), 

Vredefontein (21/9/R and 21/10). Korridor 21 is now used for grazing by 

local herders at very low densities. 

• The Korridor Wes 2 (also known as Corridor West) consisting of the former 

farm units: Uitkyk (2/1), Windwaai (2/2), Muisvlei (2/3/R), Sukkei (2/5), 

Swartbank (2/4), Witbank (2/6/R), Pagvlei (2/8/R), Witvoorkop (2/9/R), Arries 

(2/10/R). Korridor Wes 2 is now used for grazing by local herders at very low 

densities. 

Additional Buffer Zones in the area: 

There are additional areas of current and future protection which will also serve to 

buffer the Core Area, although they do not border directly on the Core Area. These 

include: 

Emerging Vioolsdrif Community Conservancy: This large area borders the 

Nababiep Provincial Nature Reserve to the East and is currently being developed 

into a community protected area following the example of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy. 

Kleinduin and Oograbies Wes: These two large farm units are owned and 

managed by South African National Parks (SANParks) for biodiversity conservation. 

2.a.iii. Potential future inclusions to the World Heritage Site 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy stands on its own as a World Heritage 

Site as the most representative cultural landscape, cultural site and natural site of 

the Succulent Karoo Biome and Nama traditional areas, the details of which are 

described below. However, there are other areas which could potentially in the


future supplement the Richtersveld World Heritage Site. These areas, described 

below, form part of the evolving Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation Area 

(TFCA) 3 which serves to link the numerous cultural and natural conservation and 

preservation sites in the transboundary region. Please refer to the Greater !Gariep 

Transfrontier Map (Map 4) and the Richtersveld Protected Areas Map (Map 5) 

located in Appendix A for locations of these areas. 

The Richtersveld National Park comprises unique landscapes, geological 

formations and rare and often endemic succulent plants, also forming a very 

important part of the Succulent Karoo Biome and ‘Biodiversity Hotspot’ as denoted 

by Conservation International. The park was assessed in the Richtersveld World 

Heritage Site Feasibility Study carried out and published in 2004. Despite the 

botanical and cultural attributes which the park offers, the park was excluded from 

the nomination on the premise that mining is currently being carried out in the 

northwestern part of the park. 

These mining activities, however, pose no threat to the Conservancy. Firstly, there 

are no diamond deposits in the Conservancy and massive geological formations 

form a natural buffer between the RNP and the Conservancy area, and there are 

more barriers inside the RNP itself well before the Conservancy border. Diamond 

mining activities within the park are carried out in and restricted to an area over 50 

kilometres away from the Conservancy, and restricted to the banks and ancient 

oxbows of the Orange River that over millions of years carried the diamonds to the 

sea where the bulk are deposited in ancient marine gravel beds. Additionally, the 

new Protected Areas Act prevents the expansion of mining activities deeper into the 

national park. When the current mining, which is downscaling at present, is ceased 

and acceptable rehabilitation measures have been implemented, then the national 

park may be considered and thoroughly assessed as a potential supplement to the 

World Heritage Site. 

3 More information on the process of developing this TFCA described in Suich, H. et al., 2004. 

Reflections on Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCAs) using the emerging Greater !Gariep TFCA 

along the Namibian and South African border as an example. Cape Town: Document submitted to 

Environment and Development in 2005.


In Namibia, there are three areas which were identified in the feasibility study as 

potential components of a serial transfrontier World Heritage Site. These include Ai- 

Ais Hot Springs Game Park (the Namibian portion of the Ai-Ais Richtersveld 

Transfrontier Park), the //Gamaseb Communal Conservancy and the Sperrgebiet 

Restricted Area. Ai-Ais itself is comprised of the Ai-Ais Hot Springs, the Huns 

Mountains and the Fish River Canyon, the second deepest canyon in the world and 

currently on Namibia’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites. The //Gamaseb 

Communal Conservancy is a Namibian stronghold for Nama culture, language and 

tradition and retains very close cultural links with the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy. The Sperrgebiet Restricted Area is comprised of a coastal diamond 

mining concession and a near pristine and very large expanse of Succulent Karoo. 

The Sperrgebiet has recently been declared a national park by the Namibian 

government, but this has not come into effect operationally. Similar to the 

Richtersveld National Park, the Sperrgebiet can be assessed when mining ceases 

and rehabilitation has been acceptably carried out with assurances that no future 

mining activities will take place. 

2.a.iv. Overview of Climate and Geology of the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy 

The unique biodiversity which justifies the nomination of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy as a World Heritage Site under criteria ix and x, is a result 

of unusual climatic and geomorphic characteristics which occur in few other places 

in the world. The region is arid with rainfall as low as 55mm per year in places along 

the Orange River and the Conservancy is furthermore located in an area where the 

summer and winter rainfall zones overlap. The climate and resultant biota are 

largely determined by the Atlantic Ocean approximately 100 kilometres to the west. 

There, the cold Benguela Current reaches the dry coastal desert and results in 

dense cloud banks which reach as far inland as the Conservancy and creates damp 

conditions supplying flora with necessary moisture. In the winter rainfall areas, rain 

is unusually reliable, as opposed to other deserts, and this gives rise to conditions 

which can support such a diversity of life.


The climate is further affected by intense summer “berg” (mountain) winds which 

originate from the east being drawn towards low pressure cells in the Atlantic. 

Temperatures fluctuate often over short periods of time between hot and cold with 

an annual range of zero degrees Celsius in winter to as high as 45 degrees Celsius 

in summer. Temperature regimes are varied throughout the area from low-lying 

points along the Orange River to high, exposed mountain peaks in the interior of the 

Conservancy. These climatic factors are added to by wide variations in elevation 

ranging to as high as 1300 metres. 

The Orange River carves through the Richtersveld Mountains and serves as the border with Namibia 

Geologically, the Richtersveld is regarded as one of the most interesting and 

visually stunning geological areas of Southern Africa. The Richtersveld has eight 

geological units deposited over an enormous time span with rocks ranging in age 

from one to 2000 million years old. The ancient geological forces which occurred in 

the Richtersveld are clearly evident - intense folding, buckling and fracturing as a 

result of uplifting, plate movements, and volcanic and glacial systems are on display 

in what can be described as an open-air museum throughout the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy, most strikingly in the high cliff walls along the Orange 

River. 

Numerous geological suites make up the Richtersveld landscape. The volcanic 

rocks of the Orange River Group represent the oldest Richtersveld rocks at 1996


million years in age. These are found in the Conservancy at places along the 

Orange River and in the Windvlakte Formation in the Fluorspar Valley and Black 

Face Mountain areas. The Vioolsdrif Suite with rocks aging between 1900 and 1731 

million years intruded the Orange River Group and are represented in the 

Conservancy in the Rooiberg area as well as the remote lands in the north by the 

border of the Richtersveld National Park. These extrusive igneous rocks were 

created from intense pressures forcing molten lava up through the crust. The next 

oldest group called the Richtersveld Suite (920 million years ago) is comprised of 

steep dome-shaped masses of granite and ring complexes and can be found in the 

area of Mt. Stewart in the eastern parts of the Conservancy along the Orange River. 

The Gariep Complex’s Hilda Suite and the Stinkfontein Formation comprise most of 

the western part of the Conservancy and the Stinkfontein Mountains which form the 

high central ‘spine’ of the Richtersveld that serves as a barrier between the cold fog 

deposits on the west and the drier areas to the east. These north-south running 

mountains are largely responsible for the climatic differentials and variety of habitat 

types in the Core Area. The high mountains trap moisture at their peaks giving rise 

to the high rates of endemism amongst the mountain flora, as well as creating a 

very different environment and flora on the eastern side extending to the Orange 

River. The highest mountain in the Richtersveld, Cornellsberg (1377 metres) lies at 

the heart of the Stinkfontein Range and at the centre of the Conservancy. Also 

along this prominent north-south line is the unusual kilometre-wide Gannakouriep 

Suite, a range of black, doleritic dykes which were formed by upwelling magma 

intrusions between 870-540 million years ago. The younger rocks of the Nama 

Group, however, are perhaps the most dramatic of all with visible and intense 

folding on display in eastern part of the Conservancy and the Helskloof Provincial 

Game Reserve. 

It is important to note the importance the geological formations have on the natural 

environment of the Conservancy. Not only have the range of geological formations 

created a wide variety of habitats and climate systems, but they have also resulted 

in an isolated environment protected on several sides by physical barriers. The 

northern and northwestern borders are the most obvious to the observer with the 

massive mountains of the Orange River Suite rising high from the floor of the land


and serving as the northern and northwestern boundary to the Conservancy. These 

mountains are almost entirely impassible and have no roads. The Eastern boundary 

is also effectively sealed off by the high quartzite cliff walls on the Namibian side of 

the Orange River, making the shore along most of the Namibian side unreachable 

except by boat and uninhabitable by people. The Helskloof Provincial Reserve is 

also comprised of high cliffs, deep canyons and an expanse of black and 

inhospitable rock faces unfit for agriculture or human habitation. These geological 

factors insulate the Conservancy in many ways from encroachment by unsuitable 

land uses along its borders. 

2.a.v. Overview of Fauna 

Faunal diversity is very rich and endemism rates very high for reptiles and 

invertebrates. Some notable species of arthropods include the Stenocarid beetles which 

have the longest legs in proportion to body size of any beetle on earth and the great 

diversity of scorpion species, of which 70 species live in the Succulent Karoo, 20 of 

which are endemic. These include Parabuthus granulatus, considered the most 

venomous scorpion in southern Africa and P. villosus which when disturbed can eject 

venom from its tail up for to a metre. To support the high diversity of plant species a 

similarly high diversity of pollinators is required, including monkey-beetles, bees, wasps, 

blister beetles, and the nemestrinid and tabanid flies which use a 70 millimetre long 

proboscis to tap nectar from flowers. 

Reptiles also demonstrate high diversity and endemism rates. Snake species 

include Bitis cornuta, B. caudalis, B. arietans, Psammophis leightoni namibensis, 

Naja nigricollis woodii, Leptotyphlops occidentalis, and the endemic B. zeropaga 

(Desert Mountain Adder) and B. schneideri, (Namaqua Dwarf Adder and the 

smallest of Africa’s adders measuring only 20-25 centimetres). Chelonia is 

represented by the smallest tortoise on earth, Homopus signatus, which grows to 

maximum of 96 mm. Also very small is Psammobates tentorius, which occurs in the 

Richtersveld and reaches between 90-100 mm. 

Most of the endemic species of reptiles, as well as mammals, are burrowing 

animals because of the extreme heat and the geographic isolation which often


characterizes burrowing animals. Of such endemics to the Succulent Karoo are 

three amphibians including the Namaqua Rain Frog (Breviceps namaquensis) 

which only emerges from the sands during times of rain and which is equipped with 

shovel-like feet in order to dig burrows and an adhesive secretion which enables 

the bulbous-shaped male and females to adjoin during copulation. The Namaqua 

Caco Frog (Cacosternum namaquense) also hibernates during times of drought 

lasting even years and is believed by the Nama to have been born out of the dense 

mist clouds, as they only appear when the ground is moist and the open pans have 

become full of water. Other endemics include two species of burrowing skinks, four 

species of girdled lizards, five species of legless skinks and the Namaqua 

Chameleon (Chamaleo namaquensis). 

Breviceps namaquensis and Brachypodiom occidentalis 

Mammal species are not unusually plentiful in the region and species endemism is 

low, with a notable exception of the De Winton's golden mole (Cryptochloris wintoni), 

Van Zyl’s golden mole (C. zyli) and the Namaqua dune molerat (Bathyergus janetta). 

Some springbok antelope can be found in the southwestern part of the Conservancy 

bordering on the communal grazing areas, and kudu, steenbok and klipspringer are 

other antelope species occurring in the Conservancy. Leopard, caracal, black-backed 

jackal, chacma baboon and brown hyena can also be found at low densities and a small 

herd of Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra inhabit the northeastern areas bordering on the 

Richtersveld National Park. 

In all the Richtersveld fauna, highly specialised techniques are used for survival in 

the harsh environment. Cryptic colouring is used by most species, from the agamas 

blending into succulent plants, horned adders taking the colour of sand and the


myriad of grasshopper, cricket, spider and other arthropods which take the 

colouring and shape of rocks. Because of the lack of dense vegetation, insect 

species, notably the grasshoppers, exhibit shape and colour characteristics to 

resemble stone types instead of vegetation with a variety of colouration resembling 

blue-grey of dolomite, rusty reds of quartzite, grey browns of shale-shist, shinier 

grey of quartzite, purples of shale, yellows and oranges of sandstone and 

weathered granite, and pinks and greens to resemble different soil types. Other 

survival strategies in insects include those of the bug species which also use their 

surroundings for protection, and in the case of some Eurychora species this is 

affected by emitting a waxy substance onto which particles of sand and debris stick 

to hide the bug from predators. Several beetle species also use waxy coating for 

conservation of water by decreasing direct exposure to the sun. 

The cryptic colouration of a Richtersveld stone cricket 

2.a.vi. Flora of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

The Broader Richtersveld 

Geographically the “Richtersveld” is very broadly considered as the area between 

the Orange River in the north and the Port Nolloth-Steinkopf road in the south; the 

Atlantic Ocean in the west and the Vioolsdrif-Steinkopf road in the east. This broad 

geographical area also coincides with what is widely known to be a unique 

geological and botanical area. There have been many biogeographical delineations 

of the Richtersveld, and even today the exact area is still debated. Looking at the


biogeographical region in the broadest sense, it can be shown by certain vegetation 

types given in figure 1 below: 

Figure 1: The Richtersveld, as seen from a biogeographical concept in the 

broadest sense, delineated by vegetation units. Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy, Richtersveld National Park and Helskloof Nature Reserve are 

outlined in the green line. (Mucina & Rutherford, 2004):


The vegetation in the Richtersveld is representative of 3 biomes, the Desert, 

Succulent Karoo and a small patch of Fynbos represented by the Stinkfonteinberge 

Quartzite Fynbos (Figure 2). 

Figure 2: The biomes represented in the Broader Richtersveld: 

The recognition that the southern limit of the Desert biome is found south of the 

Orange River is only recent. Jürgens (1991) widened the concept of desert by (a) 

including the arid belt in vicinity of the lower Orange River from the Richtersveld to 

the Pofadder region and (b) by introducing three subunits of desert (also: 

biogeographical districts), which occur within South Africa: Southern Namib Desert, 

Western Gariep Desert and Eastern Gariep Desert. 

Within the Richtersveld it was acknowledged that there is a Gariep Center of 

Endemism (Hilton-Taylor & Le Roux, 1989; Van Wyk and Smith 2001). More


detailed classification of the vegetation for the Richtersveld recently has changed 

the biogeographical concept of the Richtersveld, both on a biome and bioregional 

level. It has become clear that there are very different biogeographical patterns 

found in close vicinity in the area. 

Jürgens (1991, 1997) defines two very different centres of endemism, albeit located 

close to each other. While these two centres of endemism are climatically well 

separated by predominantly winter and summer rainfall areas, it has been proposed 

that they formed refugia for survival during the last glaciation for most of the 

endemic taxa (Jürgens 1991, 1997, Midgley et al. 2001). Conservation of taxa may 

have been mainly supported by gorge systems within dissected mountain areas, 

inselbergs, and dunes in the coastal Sandveld. 

Jürgens (1991) recognized two Centers of Endenism, the Western Gariep Centre 

and the East Gariep Centre of Endemism (Jürgens 1991, 1997). The Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy falls in the East Gariep Center and contributes greatly in 

the conservation of endemic species. 

Vegetation, climatic and geological descriptions of each Vegetation Unit (The 

information on the vegetation descriptions were obtained from Mucina & Rutherford 

(In Prep)) 

The Conservancy is representative of 3 biomes: the Desert, Succulent Karoo and a 

small patch of Fynbos represented by the Stinkfonteinberge Quartzite Fynbos 

(Figure 2). It is representative of 13 vegetation units (Figure 3). Species lists for 

each vegetation unit is found in Appendix F.


Figure 3: Richtersveld Community Conservancy Vegetation Units: 

DESERT BIOME (East Gariep Centre) 

Lower Gariep Alluvial Vegetation 

75406.5520 total ha 

1169.6731 ha in Richtersveld Community Conservancy = 1.55% 

The Lower Gariep Alluvial Vegetation unit is found in a narrow strip along the 

Orange River from just east of Alexander Bay to the Boegoeberg Dam in the 

Northern Cape. A very small percentage of this unit is found in the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy and consists of alluvial sandy floodplains next to the


Orange River from the inflow of the Van Zyls River to Modderdrif-Suid. Mainly 

syenites and granites of the Richtersveld Suite are found here. 

Hot and dry conditions both in winter and summer are typical for the low altitudes 

along the Orange River with winter and summer rainfall, but predominantly in the 

summer rainfall. Annual rainfall is between 40 and 60 mm and the temperature in 

the summer is often between 40 °C and 50 °C. 

The vegetation is a gallery forest consisting mainly of trees like Tamarix usneoides, 

Rhus pendulina, Ziziphus micronata, Euclea pseudebenus, Acacia karoo and the 

exotic invader Prosopis glandulosa, as well as shrubs like Tetragonia schenckii in 

the temporarily flooded clay, loam or sandy terraces and pans. The trees are often 

infested with Viscum capensis and Tapinanthes oleifolius. Where there has been 

disturbance Epaltes gariepina, Nicotiana glauca (exotic invader), Frankenia 

pulverulenta, Coronopus integrifolius, Gnaphalium confine, Cyperus laevigatus and 

Argemone ochroleuca (exotic invader) are found. Other indicators of disturbance 

along the river are patches of Cynodon dactylon and Phragmites australis. In the 

still waters and shallow parts of the river, the reed Gomphostigma virgatum is 

found. 

Helskloof Canyon Desert 

826.1197 total ha 


A small north-south valley where the lower reaches of the Groen River run into the 

Orange River between the Nababiepsberge in the east and the Rooiberge in the 

west. Altitudes vary between 160 to 300 m. Rock formations are mainly quartzite of 

the Kuibis Subgroup (Nama Group) with fringes of the area occurring on the 

metavolcanics and metasediments of the De Hoop Subgroup (Orange River 

Group). Shale, quartzite and limestone of the Schwarzrand Subgroup (Nama 

Group) are also present. The soils are alluvial sediment with colluvial material in 

places.


Rainfall between 40 and 60 mm per year tending to peak in late summer, but very 

variable. However, some localised winter water input is received through drainage 

from the winter rainfall area to the south. Summers are very hot, often more than 40 

°C and occasionally reaching 50°C, and the winters are mild. The bottom of the 

canyon is one of the hottest environments in the Richtersveld. 

Small sparse trees like Schotia afra, Maerua gilgii, Maerua schinzii and Adenolobus 

gariepensis are found in the dry river beds. In the debris and washes of the canyon 

bottom trees such as Schotia afra, Boscia foetida and Parkinsonia africana, or 

shrubs such as Sisyndite spartea, Calicorema capitata and Gaillonia crocyllis are 

frequently found. On the rocky slopes, scattered populations of succulents of, for 

example, Aloe dichotoma, Brownanthus ciliatus, Brownanthus nucifer, Ceraria 

namaquensis, Euphorbia gariepina, Euphorbia phylloclada, Euphorbia virosa, 

Ruschia paucipetala and Zygophyllum microcarpum occur. Other nonsucculent 

species found include Hermbstaedtia glauca, Fagonia capensis, Kissenia capensis, 

Monechma mollissimum, Codon royenii, Pharnaceum croceum, Sesuvium 

sesuvioides, Trichodesma africanum and Odyssea paucinervis. 

There are no known species strictly restricted to this unit. However, Helskloof 

Canyon Desert has a high number of endemic elements of the East Gariep Centre 

sheet-wash valleys (e.g. Maerua gilgii), and of the narrower East Gariep Centre 

mountain deserts (Brownanthus nucifer, Mesembryanthemum gariusanum, 

Schwantesia herrei, Tylecodon hallii). On some rocky slopes large creeping 

individuals of Bowiea gariepensis occur. 

The unit is protected in the form of the provincial Nababiep (Helskloof) Reserve as 

well as the Conservancy. 

Kahams Mountain Desert 

59449.6899 total ha 


This highly dissected landscape with rugged mountains and bare rock is located 

between the Stinkfonteinberge basal apron in the west and the Orange River and


Hellskloof Canyon in the east, between the Rosyntjieberge Mountains in the north 

and the Rooiberg in the south and includes Gorgon’s Head, Mount Stewart and 

Black Face Mountain. Altitudes vary from about 200 to 800 m. The granodiorite, 

adamellite, leucogranite, tonalite and diorite of the Vioolsdrif Suite are intruded by 

syenites and granites of the Richtersveld Suite and together account for three 

quarters of the area; Calc-alkaline, acid and metavolcanic rocks and quartzitic 

metasediments of the De Hoop Subgroup, Orange River Group are also significant. 

The area is very rocky with little to no soils. 

There is a steep gradient of increasing aridity from west to east, in the east, hot and 

dry conditions are typical for the low altitudes along the Orange River, while in the 

western parts at higher elevations, nearer the foothills of the Stinkfonteinberge 

Range, the climate is relatively more humid and cooler. Rainfall between 45 to 70 

mm per year falls both in the winter and summer with more dominant summer 

rainfall tending in the east. Fog is absent. Maximum summer temperatures reach up 

to 50°C. 

The vegetation is very sparse becoming somewhat less sparse to the west. Species 

found in the plains, often in dry river beds include tall shrubs like Zygophyllum 

prismatocarpum, Sisyndite spartea, Nymannia capensis. Tall succulent shrubs 

(Aloe dichotoma, Ceraria namaquensis and Euphorbia virosa) as well as succulent 

dwarf shrubs (Brownanthus nucifer, Brownanthus ciliatus, Brownanthus 

pseudoschlichtianus, Euphorbia gariepina, Euphorbia gummifera, Hereroa 

hesperantha, Petalidium parvifolium, Trianthema triquetra) are mostly found on 

slopes and quartz patches. No strict endemics to this vegetation unit are known but 

the unit contains a number of endemics of the East Gariep Centre, such as 

Brownanthus nucifer, Euphorbia gariepina, Lithops meyeri, Mesembryanthemum 

gariusanum, Pelargonium desertorum, Sarcocaulon herrei, Schwantesia herrei and 

Tylecodon hallii. 

The unit borders on units of the Succulent Karoo Biome to the north, south and 

west. In the far north of the unit, 6% is protected within the Richtersveld National 

Park and to the east 16% is found in the Nababiep Nature Reserve. Parts of this


vegetation unit have been impacted by grazing, and the development of the 

Conservancy has served to reduce associated environmental damage. 

Northern Nababiepsberge Mountain Desert 

24587.4792 total ha 


This unit is found on a large rocky plateau interrupted by deep gorges, south of the 

Orange River, west of Vioolsdrif, east of Hellskloof with a southern boundary 15 to 

20 kilometres south of the river. The area is very rocky with no soils to little and 

extremely shallow soils. The altitude is from about 200 to 750 m. The geology 

consists mainly of shale, quartzite and limestone of the Schwarzrand Subgroup with 

a small area underlain by the Quartzite of the Kuibis Subgroup (Nama Group). 

There are extreme differences between vegetation on the plateaus and in the 

gorges; the plateaus are often almost bare of any vegetation with extremely sparse 

populations of Zygophyllum rigidum, Zygophyllum decumbens, Euphorbia 

gariepina, Mesembryanthemum gariusanum and Ruschia paucipetala, while 

Ruschia subaphylla and Wellstedia dinteri are found on rock debris. Depending on 

local hydrological conditions, the bottoms of the gorges can be bare of vegetation or 

woody shrubs can form low gallery shrublands as in the Helskloof Canyon Desert. 

Shrubs such as Curroria decidua, Maerua schinzii, Trianthema triquetra and 

Wellstedia dinteri are more often found in dry drainage lines. 

This area is not well researched and is possibly the most sparsely vegetated of the 

desert units. 

FYNBOS BIOME 

Stinkfonteinberge Quartzite Fynbos 

4902.8125 total ha 

3436.9688 ha in Richtersveld Community Conservancy = 70.1%


This small unit is found in the Central Richtersveld in a narrow belt along the 

mountain tops and ridges of the Van der Sterrberg-Stinkfonteinberge range and 

forms the upper backbone of the Richtersveld, as the Van der Sterrberg - 

Stinkfonteinberge range runs from the northern end of the Richtersveld near 

Sendelingsdrif to just north of Eksteensfontein in the Southern Richtersveld. The 

landscape at the high altitudes of between 1060–1340 m is as diverse as the 

geomorphology of the longitudinal mountain range. While over long distances it 

really forms a ridge in North-South direction, in other places steep or rounded 

mountain tops are embedded, or, between those, saddles and valleys. In other 

parts, a plateau has been formed, allowing accumulation of soils above bedrock. 

Therefore, habitat types differ strongly and are controlled by rock structure or 

overlaying soil depth, by exposition and by inclination. A wide spectrum of different 

rocks is found, but predominantly quartzite of the Precambrian Gariep Complex. 

The soils are mainly loams or loamy sands and the soil depth varies strongly with 

topography and rock structure. 

This area has a mild winter rainfall climate with occurrence of fog in the western 

parts and higher altitudes. The rainfall is controlled by geomorphology and it is 

presumably reaching more than 200 mm per year at the highest altitudes. Frost is 

possible at 10 to 20 days per year. 

The vegetation can form dense shrublands where soil depth and rock structure 

allow water storage over longer periods of the year. On flatter plateau positions with 

leached quartzite soils open Merxmuellera dura grasslands can be found. Very 

shallow soils and bare rock support vegetation with a dominance of leaf succulent 

dwarf shrubs. Small trees or large shrubs found here are Aloe ramosissima, Rhus 

incisa var. effuse and Rhus populifolia. Dominant shrubs or tall shrubs found are 

Lobostemon echioides, Dicerothamnus rhinocerotis, Euryops tenuissimus, Didelta 

spinosa, Eriocephalus brevifolius, Eriocephalus microphyllous, Helichrysum 

hebelepis, Chrysocoma ciliata, Tripteris sinuata, Felicia brevifolia, Passerina 

glomerata, Asparagus retrofractus, Asparagus exuvialis, Galenia africana, Montinia 

caryophyllacea, Pteronia divaricata and Pteronia glauca. Stem and/or leaf succulent 

shrubs include Stoeberia arborea, Othonna furcata, Tylecodon paniculatum, 

Euphorbia francescae (endemic and with succulent roots), Dioscorea elephantipes,


Adromischus marianeae, Antimima pilosula, Aridaria brevicarpa, Cephalophyllum 

goodii, Ceraria fruticulosa, Crassula expansa ssp. pyrifolia, Crassula 

hemisphaerica, Crassula macowaniana, Crassula muscosa var. obtusifolia, Prenia 

sladeniana and Tetragonia reduplicate. The graminoid component is represented 

by Merxmuellera dura, Ischyrolepis sieber, Bromus pectinatus, Ehrharta calycina, 

Ehrharta delicatula, Ehrharta longiflora and, Fingerhuthia africana. 

For a number of taxa including Lobostemon echioides, Merxmuellera dura, 

Ischyrolepis sieberi and Passerina glomerata this unit represents the northermost 

occurrence. 

Most of the unit is under relatively natural conditions and experiences only little 

disturbance from pastoral use. 30% of the unit are located and protected within the 

Richtersveld National Park, although this refers to the somewhat drier northern part 

of the unit. The remaining is protected by the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy. 

SUCCULENT KAROO BIOME 

Central Richtersveld Mountain Shrubland 

120038.8662 total ha 


This unit is found in the central regions of the Richtersveld, along the Central 

Mountain Ridge from Khodas Peak in the North along the Vandersterrberg and 

Stinkfontein Range stretching about 100 km in north-south direction, however, 

excluding the highest altitudes where it grades into Stinkfonteinberge Quartzite 

Fynbos. It forms the major part of the Richtersveld mountains, including a wide 

variety of landscapes. Steep and rocky mountains are dominant with a rolling 

topography in other parts. Deep canyons, but also wider valleys, can be found 

scattered over most of the area. A spectrum of metavolcanics and metasediments, 

mostly quartzite, of the Stinkfontein Subgroup of the Gariep Supergroup and 

granites of the Mokolian Vioolsdrif Suite are present. The soils encompass a wide


variety of loamy sands, sands and loams derived from granites and have a pH 

between 7 and 8. 

This area has a mild winter rainfall climate with occurrence of fog in the western 

parts and higher altitudes. Frost is very rare at lower altitudes but up to 10 days per 

year in the higher mountains. Rainfall varies from 60 to 200 mm but with most of the 

area less than 90 mm. At higher altitudes, especially on southwestern slopes, the 

frequent occurrence of fog or cloud results in a significant additional water supply 

for plants. 

There is a gradient of increasing density and height of vegetation with increasing 

altitude and far denser vegetation occurs on the southwestern slopes than on the 

northeastern slopes (see climate above). A wide range of habitat types result in a 

very high alpha and beta diversity. The most important types of shrubland are: (a) 

the sparse dwarf-shrub vegetation of the plains and valley bottoms, with 

communities dominated by either Brownanthus pseudoschlichtianus on loamy or 

silty soils (associated with Cheiridopsis robusta, Drosanthemum otzenianum, 

Euphorbia ephedroides, Zygophyllum retrofractum, Hypertelis salsoloides and 

Aridaria noctiflora) or Zygophyllum prismatocarpum (chamaephytic form) and 

Mesembryanthemum pellitum, on calcretes; (b) the dwarf shrublands of the lowlying 

or more arid parts of the mountains, showing high abundance of Ceraria 

fruticulosa and Euphorbia chersina and with two main plant communities dominated 

by either Ruschia senaria (associated with Sphalmanthus deciduus, Sphalmanthus 

decurvatus, Hermbstaedtia glauca) or by Galenia dregeana (associated with 

Ruschia affinity sarmentosa, Euphorbia hamata, Astridia speciosa, Crassula grisea, 

Aloe pearsonii, Cotyledon orbiculatum, partly Othonna opima, Crassula elegans, 

Senecio corymbiferus etc.) or by Zygophyllum prismatocarpum (upright form); (c) 

tall and dense shrubland (sometimes greater than 2 m high) at higher altitudes on 

the mountains with communities quite similar to the dominant vegetation of the 

Namaqualand Klipkoppe Shrubland, with a group of communities dominated by 

Didelta spinosa and either associated with Aloe ramosissima, Sarcostemma 

viminalis and Indigofera pungens (warmer eastern units, often gravel) or with Rhus 

populifolia, Tylecodon paniculatus, Montinia caryophyllacea, Othonna furcata, 

Stoeberia frutescens or with Aloe pearsonii (often in mass populations, e.g. in the


Numees Hellskloof area) or with Galenia africana (all these often on deeper, more 

loamy soils). These communities form a transition towards high-altitude dry and 

species-poor form of quartzite fynbos with Dicerothamnus rhinocerotis and Euryops 

tenuissimus. There is a high number of endemic taxa in this unit (Adenoglossa 

decurrens, Aloe pearsonii, Androcymbium exiguum subsp. vogelii, Astridia 

speciosa, Cephalophyllum goodie, Cheiridopsis pilosula, Crotalaria pearsonii, 

Galenia dregeana, Othonna herrei, Othonna opima, Pelargonium desertorum, 

Trachyandra aridimontana and Tylecodon kritzingeri). 

This unit is the least threatened of the vegetation units and it virtually untransformed 

but is subject to grazing pressure, mainly by goats. This vegetation is of high 

importance due to numerous endemic species. A similar unit occurs in a restricted 

area on the northern side of the Orange River in Namibia. Although the unit is 

characterised by high beta diversity on a local scale along steep altitudinal 

gradients, it has a surprisingly wide distribution of communities along the northsouth 

gradient. Endemic taxa shared with some neighbouring vegetation units 

include Cephalophyllum goodii, Galenia dregeana Pelargonium desertorum and 

Tylecodon krinzingeri. Some endemic taxa may also occur in equivalent vegetation 

types in Namibia. 

Goariep Mountain Succulent Shrubland 

17077.73 total ha 


The unit is entirely formed by the Gariep Mountain (Ploegberg) – a large granite 

inselberg located entirely in the western part of the Conservancy. The circular 

geomorphological structure of the Goariep Mountain rises steeply above the 

surrounding landscape, mostly plains and culminates in numerous granite domes. 

The altitude ranges from 300 to 1214m. Habitat types differ strongly with regards to 

the granitically derived soil (texture and nutrients) from the Kuboos Pluton, 

exposition and moisture levels, the last mentioned being relatively high for a region 

in close proximity (< 20 km) to the hyperarid Namib Desert habitats.


This unit is in a winter-rainfall area with about 70 mm rainfall per annum, increasing 

with altitude and controlled by relief, probably reaching as high as 200 mm at higher 

altitudes. High moisture levels are generated by orogenic uplift of moist air by the 

slopes of the Goariep Mountain’s large granite massiv, the first high mountain in the 

pathway of the airstream, which moves in from the ocean from a southern, 

southwestern or western direction. Consequently, rainfall and fog generate the 

highest precipitation along the southern and western slopes of the mountain 

especially at higher altitudes. Frequency of frost depends on the altitude, reaching 

up to 10 days per year in the summit area. 

In the region, the Goariep Mountain Succulent Shrubland has the largest surface 

area with highest densities of photosynthetically active biomass, as measured by 

the NDVI index of NOAA or MODIS satellite data. The vegetation consists of dense 

to very dense and tall shrubland with a high frequency of populations of Aloe 

ramosissima, Carissa bispinosa, Ceraria fruticulosa, Cheiridopsis robusta, Codon 

royenii, Cotyledon orbiculata, Crassula grisea, Cyrtanthus herrei, Indigofera 

pungens, Montinia caryophyllacea, Rhus populifolia, Salvia garipensis, 

Sarcostemma viminale and many other shrubs or dwarf shrubs, both succulent and 

non-succulent. 

The lower reaches of the vegetation unit are susceptible to grazing, but the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy serves as the only conservation measure for 

this entire unit. 

Kosiesberg Succulent Shrubland 

61217.6421 total ha 


Situated in the southwestern Richtersveld, the unit includes a major part of the 

mountain ranges and escarpment region stretching 55 km from Eksteensfontein in 

the north over the slopes of the Kosiesberg to the Anenouspass in the southeast. 

The unit forms the escarpment that includes the steep slope between the high 

plateau in the east and the lower plateau in the west as well as several ranges of 

mountains and hills at the upper and lower level. Due to the incision of deep valley


systems the unit is deeply dissected with a number of thinly connected fragments. 

Altitude varies from about 500 to 1100 m. The geology consists mostly of granites 

and gneisses of which the Mokolian Hoogoor and Vioolsdrif Suites are most 

significant. However, a large area in the west is underlain by alkali-granite of the 

Korridor Suite which supports mostly loamy soils. 

It is a winter rainfall area with an estimated at 100 to 200 mm (possibly slightly 

higher) rain per annum with orogenic cloud formations and fog frequently observed 

in winter. At higher altitudes up to 10 frost days per year can be expected. 

The unit is characterised by a high beta-diversity due to steep altitudinal gradients 

and mountainous topography. Conophytum herreanthus ssp. herreanthus 

(Herreanthus meyeri) occurs at Klipbok (within the unit) but also within Umdaus 

Mountains Succulent Shrubland). Cheiridopsis speciosa and Tylecodon bayeri are 

also found at the margin to Rooiberg Quartz Succulent Shrubland. Although the 

summit of Kosiesberg is mapped just outside this unit, its main escarpment 

represents this unit. A number of the plant communities, which also occur in the 

Central Richtersveld Montane Shrubland, occur here, as well (Juergens, 2004). 

However, due to the cooler temperatures and possibly higher rainfall this shrubland 

shows some important differences with the Central Richtersveld Montane 

Shrubland. Generally, it has a higher proportion of the tall-grown and dense 

shrublands (partly more than 2 m high) with communities quite similar to the 

dominant vegetation of the Namaqualand Klipkoppe Shrubland, with a group of 

communities dominated by Didelta spinosa and associated with Tylecodon 

paniculatus, Montinia caryophyllacea, Othonna furcata and Galenia africana. In 

addition, a large number of species occur here, which do not occur (or are only 

rarely seen) in the Central Richtersveld Montane Shrubland, especially many 

geophytes, e.g. species of the genera Babiana, Haemanthus, Hesperantha, 

Hessea, Lachenalia, Strumaria, Syringodea and Tulbaghia. 

A major part is relatively protected due to the steep and inaccessible landscape and 

only a fraction exists within the Conservancy (1.4%) and receives its protection. The 

unit is not well studied and includes a large number of species, including rare and 

endemic ones. Therefore, parts of the unit, including at least a part of the


escarpment slopes, should be conserved. In the future, investigations will be 

undertaken to extend the boundary of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

southwards to include more of this unit. 

Lekkersing Succulent Shrubland 

81474.4986 total ha 


The Lekkersing Succulent Shrubland is a longitudinal band in the southwestern 

Richtersveld stretching north and south of Lekkersing with an additional extension 

to the southeast and some scattered patches further north. All these parts are 

located in the lowlands west and southwest of the Central Mountain Ridge of the 

Richtersveld. The core area has a north-south extension of some 70 km from near 

the Goariep in the north to the vicinity of Oograbies in the south. The area consists 

of a mosaic of hills, flat or slightly rolling plains, with embedded quartz fields and 

ridges, some sand sheets and dunes, rocky gorges and including some rocky 

mountains. The altitude ranges from about 150 to 550 m. Quartz and quartzitic 

rocks are the most important. A wide spectrum of habitat types occurs, ranging from 

rock to dunes. However, the majority of the area is hilly with shallow loam or sand 

cover with gravel above bedrock. The geology consists mainly of quartzite, 

sometimes schist and dolomite of to the Precambrian Gariep Complex. 

The mean annual precipitation of 60-120 mm occurs mostly in the winter. Coastal 

fog is not as frequent as along the coast, but more important than in the 

Richtersveld mountains. Frost very rare. 

These areas are covered by leaf succulent dwarf shrublands, similar to the lower 

parts of the Richtersveld Central Mountains, but at lower densities. Coastal 

elements like Stoeberia beetzii can be dominant while Zygophyllum 

prismatocarpum (upright form) becomes more important in the disturbed areas. 

Enarganthe octonaria has the highest cover on quartzitic rock and Brownanthus 

arenosus or Cladoraphis spinosus on the dunes. Certain quartzitic gorges like the 

Karachabpoort (south of Lekkersing) are very rich in species including Cyrtanthus 

herrei, Cheilanthes hastata, Helichrysum hebelepis, Rhus undulate, Cysticapnos


vesicaria, Pelargonium echinatum and Crotalaria pearsoni as well as endemics 

including Tylecodon torulosus and Tylecodon longipes. Quartz fields, for example at 

Herre´s famous Vlakmyn area, house endemic or locally rare species like Nelia 

pillansii, and Lithops meyeri. 

Because none of this vegetation unit is conserved in a other conservation areas, it 

is an important component in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. Outside 

the Conservancy, the vegetation is in places degraded by grazing, especially in a 

radius of ca. 6 kilometers around the small village of Lekkersing making the 

conservation in the Conservancy even more important. 

Three of the many Conservancy aloes: Aloe pillansii, A. striata, and A. gariepensis 

Northern Richtersveld Scorpionstailveld 

36441.9859 total ha 


This veld consist of a series of plains or valley floors scattered in the northern 

Richtersveld, at the maps scale including the large Goariepvlakte, Koeroegabvlakte, 

some plains between Abiequarivier and Gannakourieprivier and at the western 

entrance to the Springbokvlakte. Typically fragmented and showing a landscape of 

flat, though often tilted, or very slightly undulating topography. Altitude ranges from 

260 to 760 m. While often a whole large vlakte is covered by the unit, in other cases


it is restricted to specific geomorphological locations, e.g. limited to the pediment 

west of the main mountains and to locations along the river beds, which are both 

protected against deflation by strong winds, e.g. in the Numees area. The small 

northeastern part of this area is underlain by granites of the Vioolsdrif Suite, the rest 

occurs on Cenozoic alluvium, aeolian sand and calcrete; loamy or silty soils, which 

are, as a rule, formed by aeolian deposition; not deeper than 40 cm below the 

surface calcrete layers or other calcium carbonate accumulations. Often the soils 

also show high salinity. The silt component is subject to local aeolian erosion and 

sedimentation, resulting in erosion in the bare areas between the bushes and silt 

deposition underneath the bushes - these biogenic mounds regularly attract ants 

and termites. 

Due to the wide range of the unit, also a wide spectrum of climatic conditions can 

be found. The predominantly winter annual rainfall may vary from 50 - 100 mm. Fog 

can be important, but not east of the Vandersterrberge. A few days of frost per year 

can occur in the units of higher altitude, for instance on the Koeroegabvlakte. 

Similarly, temperatures can follow a wide spectrum. However, in the northeastern 

Richtersveld, well developed Scorpionstailveld is seldom found in the hotter areas 

below an altitude of 330 m. 

Brownanthus pseudoschlichtianus (the vernacular name, “scorpion’s tail”, referring 

to the segmented stems) is typically dominant and forms low “cussion-like” plants of 

1 to 1.5 m in diameter with interspaces of 1 to 3 m. In between the plants of B. 

pseudoschlichtianus, numerous other species co-exist, some of them with high 

predictability, such as the geophyte Trachyandra muricata. Most of the Northern 

Richtersveld Scorpionstailveld is covered by a regular pattern of heuweltjies, which 

mostly are inhabited by Mesembryanthemum hypertrophicum, M. squamulosum, M. 

pellitum and Psilocaulon subnodosum. 

Aside from the Conservancy, 20% of this unit is statutorily conserved in the 

Richtersveld National Park. It is susceptible to grazing pressures and more 

protection is recommended for this unit.


Rooiberg Quartz Vygieveld 

12927.8572 total ha 


This unit is found in the region east of Eksteenfontein, south of the Rooiberg and 

west of the Hellskloof Canyon. It consists of plateau with slightly undulating flats 

and hills with a mosaic of rocky surfaces with loamy soil, while plains and hills 

covered with quartz layers have silty to sandy loamsoils. It occurs at relatively high 

altitudes of between 500 and 750 m. The geology consists of metavolcanics and 

quartzitic metasediments of the De Hoop Subgroup of the Orange River Group and 

account for half the area, with most of the remainder being granite of the Vioolsdrif 

Suite. Patches of quartzite with a diameter of some meters to several hundred 

meters imbedded within grey granite-gneiss of Precambrian often with saline loamy 

soils underlying the quartz-rich top layers. 

Succulents in the quartz fields of the Richtersveld 

The predominantly winter annual rainfall is between 70 and120 mm. There are very 

few frost days per year and fog plays does not play an important role. 

Leaf succulent dwarf shrubs like Aspazoma amplectens, Cephalophyllum regale, 

Ruschia leucosperma and Schlechteranthus hallii are dominant on quartz fields, 

together with highly contracted growth forms like Crassula deceptor, Crassula 

columnaris, Cheiridopsis speciosa. Euphorbia gummifera is dominant on rocky 

outcrops. Large plains of silty or loamy soils are dominated by Brownanthus 

pseudoschlichtianus while strongly grazed loamy soils above rock often show a


predominance of the upright dwarf shrub form of Zygophyllum prismatocarpum. 

Endemic species include Arenifera pillansii, Cephalophyllum goodie, Cheiridopsis 

herrei, Cheiridopsis speciosa, Conophytum herreanthus, Conophytum wettsteinii 

subsp. fragile, Tritonia marlothii subsp. delpierrei and Tylecodon bayeri. 

As almost nothing of this unit is conserved in another conservation area (4% in the 

Nababiep Nature Reserve) and almost 50% of this important vegetation unit is in 

the Richtersveld Community Conservancy, the Conservancy plays an important 

part in the conservation of this high endemic vegetation. A number of endemic 

species, especially within the quartz fields, point to the value for conservation. The 

major threat to this unit it grazing and illegal plant collecting which have been 

mitigated within the Conservancy. 

Stinkfonteinberge Eastern Apron Shrubland 

6586.93 total ha 


This unit is found along a narrow belt immediately east of the Stinkfonteinberge 

Range in the southeastern Richtersveld. It has a north-south trending longitudinal 

extension of about 35km from just south of the Rosyntjieberge to immediately north 

of Eksteensfontein. The landscape of this unit is formed by the lower flat slopes and 

the subsequent pediment at the foot of the Stinkfonteinberge Range and includes a 

number of small mountains. Mainly flat to rolling landscape at the foot of the higher 

mountains, characterised by deeper sandy or silty loams similar to soils of the 

Northern Richtersveld Scorpionstailveld; it is distinguished from the latter by a more 

variable topography and a much lower vegetation density and higher number of 

degradation indicator species. Granites of the Mokolian Vioolsdrif Suite 

predominate, with Stinkfontein Subgroup Quartzites on the western fringes. The 

soils are composed of silt or loam with calcretes and show extreme erosion in 

places. The altitude ranges from 500 to 800 m. 

The predominantly winter rainfall between 50 to 120mm lies within a gradient of 

orogenic rains rapidly decreasing from west to east. A few days of frost within the 

year do occur but fog is unimportant.


The vegetation is very sparse in this unit and further monitoring is required to 

assess grazing and erosion threats. No endemic species are known from this unit. 

98.5% of this unit falls within the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. 

Upper Annisvlakte Succulent Shrubland 

19180.8018 total ha 


This shrubland is found in the southern parts of the Annisvlakte north and northwest 

of the Goariep Mountain from near Kuboes to the region southeast of Arrisdrif. The 

westernmost section, southeast of Arrisdrift, is virtually separated from the main 

area by a northwards moving duneveld of red sand (part of Richtersveld Red 

Duneveld), which at its northern margin fades out to form a shallow sand sheet, 

which crosses the main road between Alexander Bay and Khubus. The landscape 

is mainly a very wide tilted plain, formed by the huge pediment of the Goariep 

Mountain, towards the Orange River. Some river courses are deeply incised into 

this plain. On the plains, habitats are controlled by soil salinity and texture, and by 

different states of degradation by overgrazing. The granite of the Kuboos Pluton of 

the Cambrian Kuboos-Bremen Suite is largely covered by alluvium loamy sandy 

gravel soils, mainly derived from granite and superficial calcrete deposits. The 

altitude ranges from 150 to 500 m. 

The predominantly winter rainfall varies between 55 to70 mm per annum. Light frost 

is a very rare event, but the unit receives sea fog from a southwesterly direction as 

well as “Malmokkie” fog. Strong winds to very strong storms occur and cause 

severe dust and sand storms with consequentially strong erosion of topsoil material 

and sandblasting. 

The present state of the vegetation is interpreted as result of strong grazing 

pressure over the past 100 years. At present, very sparse, dwarf vegetation cover, 

mainly Galenia fruticosa, Drosanthemum hispidum, Euphorbia gummifera, Galenia 

crystalline and Psilocaulon subnodosum and all indicators of disturbance, is 

observed. Another indicator of disturbance is the high numbers of annuals and


geophytes after good rains. Very high numbers of annual or bi-annual succulent 

species of Mesembryanthemum hypertrophicum and Mesembryanthemum 

squamulosum characterize this unit (Figure 2). In the past this unit was probably 

covered by Northern Richtersveld Scorpionstailveld and partly by the Ruschia 

senaria. 

None of this unit is conserved in any other conservation area and a small proportion 

falls within the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. Comparison of recent 

historical photographs shows that soil and vegetation have been severely altered 

since the early 20 th century. The export of topsoil material negatively affects 

neighbouring areas such as the Cornellskop to the east with its population of Aloe 

pillansii. 

Endemic plant species 

In addition to numerous species endemic to the Succulent Karoo or the Gariep 

Centre, the Richtersveld Community Conservancy has a high number of plant 

species endemic to just the Conservancy area’s East Gariep Centre itself. There 

are a total number of 33 endemic plant species found in the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy (Table 1) and Appendix F indicates which endemic 

species are found in each vegetation unit (note: some are found in more than one 

specific unit within the Conservancy). The Conservancy is especially important for 

the conservation of one of the world’s most endangered plants, Aloe pillansii, with 

one of the most important localities for its survival being the Rooiberg Mountains in 

the Conservancy where there are a number of these ancient plants. This attractive 

and impressive plant that towers over the hilly slopes can easily become a flagship 

species for the area. 

The highest number of endemic species is found in the Central Richtersveld 

Mountain Shrubland (13), the Rooiberg Quartz Vygieveld (9), the Kahams Mountain 

Desert (8) and the Lekkersing Succulent Shrubland (8). Only 5 of the 13 vegetation 

units have no observed Richtersveld endemic species (Table 2).


Table 1: A list of plant species endemic to the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy’s East Gariep Centre: 

Adenoglossa decurrens 

Aloe pearsonii 

Aloe pillansii 

Androcymbium exiguum subsp. vogelii 

Arenifera pillansii 

Astridia speciosa 

Bowiea gariepensis 

Brownanthus nucifer 

Cephalophyllum goodii 

Cheiridopsis herrei 

Cheiridopsis pillansii 

Cheiridopsis pilosula 

Cheiridopsis purpurea 

Cheiridopsis speciosa 

Conophytum herreanthus 

Conophytum wettsteinii subsp. fragile 

Crotalaria pearsonii 

Euphorbia francescae 

Euphorbia gariepina 

Galenia dregeana 

Lithops meyeri 

Mesembryanthemum gariusanum 

Othonna herrei 

Othonna opima 

Pelargonium desertorum 

Sarcocaulon herrei 

Trachyandra aridimontana 

Tritonia marlothii subsp. delpierrei 

Tylecodon bayeri 

Tylecodon hallii 

Tylecodon kritzingeri 

Tylecodon longipes 

Tylecodon torulosus


Table 2: The number of species endemic to the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy’s East Gariep Centre per vegetation unit: 

Biome Vegetation Unit 

Number of Plants 

Endemic to the Centre 

Desert Helskloof Canyon Desert 5 

Desert Kahams Mountain Desert 8 

Desert Lower Gariep Alluvial Vegetation 2 

Desert Northern Nababiepsberge Mountain Desert 0 

Fynbos Stinkfonteinberge Quartzite Fynbos 3 

Succulent Karoo Central Richtersveld Mountain Shrubland 13 

Succulent Karoo Goariep Mountain Succulent Shrubland 0 

Succulent Karoo Kosiesberg Succulent Shrubland 4 

Succulent Karoo Lekkersing Succulent Shrubland 8 

Succulent Karoo Northern Richtersveld Scorpionstailveld 0 

Succulent Karoo Rooiberg Quartz Vygieveld 9 

Succulent Karoo Stinkfonteinberge Eastern Apron Shrubland 0 

Succulent Karoo Upper Annisvlakte Succulent Shrubland 0 

Clearly the Conservancy contains a number of plant types in a unique combination 

that includes many endemics and endangered plant species. Lying at the heart of 

the Succulent Karoo, the highest biodiversity desert anywhere in the world, it clearly 

has universal value in terms of botanical heritage. 

2.a.vii. Cultural landscape, transhumance pastoralism and architecture 

In the Richtersveld the age old traditional way of life continues with a few variations 

to accommodate the needs of modern society. Herders or stock farmers are now 

connected to several small villages created as mission settlements and where the 

young and middle-aged live. As required under South African Law, this enables 

children of school going age to attend formal schooling and also provides limited 

opportunities for employment (many men work as migrant labourers in other parts


of the country). Community services, such as health clinics, are also located in the 

villages. 

Generally the livestock posts are occupied and stocks managed by the elderly who 

are too old to participate in the formal economy and no longer have responsibility 

for children of school going age. Over weekends and during school holidays 

children and family members from other age groups are found at the posts and it is 

in this way that the tradition of transhumance is passed down from generation to 

generation, thus insuring it perpetuation of the traditional way of life. 

In the past the KhoiKhoi were known as herders of cattle and sheep. In the harsh 

environment of the Richtersveld the goat, introduced to Southern Africa in colonial 

times fares better and most herds are now made up of a mixture of goats and 

sheep (mainly the mutton breed or ‘Dorper’) with goats, producers of both mutton 

and milk, predominating. In this precarious environment man, domestic beast and 

environment co-exist in a delicate balance that is testimony to the indigenous 

knowledge of the Nama herdsman who knows the ‘veld’ well and is able to judge its 

condition and when the time has come for the herd to move on. It is this knowledge 

and its continuing and continuous practice that calls for this desert area to be 

nominated for both its cultural and natural attributes. 

Generally a Nama family will ‘possess’ three of four grazing camps through which it 

will move its herds in the course of a year. Each camp is surrounded by an area in 

which the stock farmer grazes his herds and in many cases the livestock of others 

in his village a service for which he is paid. Due to the low carrying capacity of the 

land, herds are small and must utilize large areas in order to be sustained. 

Additionally, significant distance must be travelled between grazing areas and 

during the seasonal movement of stock to and from the winter and summer grazing 

areas. 

In the winter rainfall season herders will be found inland from the Orange River and 

will in the late winter and early summer move to one or two more camps that are 

also situated inland. Late summer grazing, until the arrival of the rains is usually 

alongside the river which becomes the only source of water once others have dried


up. Whilst technically and legally stock posts are allocated by a grazing committee, 

most family campsites are occupied by virtue of tradition and to all intent and 

purpose ‘belong’ to the family that occupies them. Whilst no detailed research has 

been done in the Conservancy, archaeological investigation of disused posts in 

other areas shows that the tradition of habitual seasonal occupation of the same 

site is longstanding and that many posts exhibit a centuries-long span of 

occupation. There is little reason to doubt that the same applies to the stock posts 

of the Richtersveld. 

In the past, goods and houses were transported from post to post by pack oxen, 

and within living memory in the Richtersveld ox wagons have been used. In recent 

times these have been replaced by the donkey cart and the bakkie (pick-up truck). 

Not all herders own a bakkie and often have to pay a person from the village to 

assist with seasonal moves that, depending upon the distances involved can take 

up to a day to complete, considering that livestock have to be herded along the 

route. 

The life of a full time herder is a lonely one with visits to the village being infrequent, 

perhaps once every month or two. It is also not unusual in the modern age to see 

women stock farming in their own right whilst their husbands are in cash 

employment elsewhere. Generally, however, in the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy stock posts are occupied by couples who between them share 

responsibility for the herd and the household. 

The tradition of migration between posts over the course of a year brings with it a 

particularly strong traditional association and attachment to the land and an 

appreciation amongst stock farmers of the ability of the land to support them and 

their beasts if it is treated with respect. Attached to this is a tradition of plant use for 

medicinal and other purposes and a strong oral traditional by which the landscape 

is defined and by which stories and practices are associated with it (Although at the 

time of writing these areas are still under-documented, there are plans to rectify this 

in the course of 2006 through a community based oral heritage documentation 

project for which funding has only recently been obtained).


The Nama also have a strong crafts tradition of which hut building and mat making 

is only a part. Known in the past for their leather clothing and other articles, leather 

work is one area in which they still manufacture artefacts. Others include textile 

printing which uses motifs taken from rock art and the environment. Traditional 

clothing, still worn by women on festive occasion consists of patchwork which is 

believed to have developed from the tradition of sewing together pieces of leather 

to create the karos, the large leather cloak of past times. 

Tanie Sana and Oom Willem who together continue the transhumance lifestyle 

Music and dance forms of the Nama, first mentioned by 17 th Century Dutch East 

India Company (VOC) expeditions to Namaqualand (the northwestern region of 

South Africa), are also undergoing a renaissance. Contemporary folk music played 

on modern instruments, principally acoustic guitar and harmonica, and usually sung 

in Afrikaans, still reflects the rhythm and tone of the past when Nama dancers did a 

similar shuffle to what is today called the ‘stapdans’ to the tune of instruments which 

are believed to have been similar to the didgeridoo or Andean pipes. These 

traditions are also tied to the land and reflect ancient ways of pre-Christian worship. 

Their perpetuation depends upon the continuation of the people’s way of life and 

continued movement with the seasons and in the period since South African 

democracy in 1994 both music and dance have seen an upsurge in practice and 

are now encouraged in schools. The Richtersveld Heritage Project funded by


NORAD under the auspices of the Department of Environment and Tourism 

(DEA&T) has generated further enthusiasm through the production of videos on 

music and dancing and by providing study tours and training for selected field 

workers 4 . 

Crafts and an annual cultural festival in Port Nolloth are being encouraged by the 

government and have for the past several years received funding from the 

‘Investing in Culture’ programme of the Department of Arts & Culture. Dancers and 

musicians from the Richtersveld regularly participate in national festivals and have 

travelled internationally. 

The “Nama Step” Dance 

2.a.viii. The |Haru Oms (please refer to Appendix C for a full report on the 

traditional Nama architecture in the Richtersveld) 

The |haru oms, literally ‘rush mat house’, also commonly known by its Afrikaans 

name matjieshut or matjieshuis (little mat hut), is the single major physically 

identifiable cultural feature of the Richtersveld. The Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy and its surroundings is the only place where this structure is still built 

in substantial quantities although it can still be seen in places to the south of the 

Conservancy, around Steinkopf, Kommagas and Leliefontein, although in a form 

that varies considerably from the original. It is no longer used commonly by Nama 

4 The Heritage Project also funded a video to be shown at the World Parks Congress in Durban in 

2003 that has helped to finalise the rolling out of funding from the Global Environment Facility 

(GEF), directed mostly at preserving the unqiue biological heritage of the Conservancy.


people in Namibia, although its method of construction is at least partially 

remembered in certain places and recently Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

elder hut builders travelled to //Gamaseb Communal Conservancy in Namibia with 

funding from the Swiss Development Corporation (SDC) through Conservation 

International to help revive the hut building process on the other side of the border. 

The |haru oms is a portable structure, perhaps typical in its basic essentials of many 

of the structures erected by nomadic people around the globe, being a sparse 

wooden frame over which a covering is thrown. In the sense that it is relatively 

easily moved and its frame and covering are separate entities it is in essence a tent 

just as is for example the yurt of Central Asia, the Tepee of the plains Indians, or 

the hut of the Afar nomads of the Horn of Africa. As with all such structures what is 

unique about it is determined by local conditions, that is the climate and materials 

that exist in the environment. However, the |haru oms differs from other such 

abodes in its extremely intricate production process and use of fine rushes found in 

the region. 

Diagram of typical |haru oms (from Hall A, Kaspar A and Whelan D. 2001. ‘'The Traditional 

Architecture of the Nama of the Richtersveld'. Copyright: McGregor Museum, Kimberley)


The |haru oms is a dome shaped structure, sometimes with the highest point over 

the main door rather than in the centre. The frame is constructed of light, bent 

staves the ends of which are placed in shallow holes. Two sets of staves are used 

one running at a 90 o angle to the other (See diagram above). The staves are bound 

to one another to provide structural rigidity and are then covered with mats. Huts 

come in a variety of sizes up to around 4m in diameter with the size traditionally 

determined by the number of mats required for a single cover over the frame rather 

than by any estimate of physical dimension. In the Richtersveld and other areas 

where huts are still manufactured, the traditional mat covering is made from one of 

three species of rush that grow locally, with coarser, more durable rushes often 

being used only on the lower part of the structure where wear-and-tear is greatest. 

(Historically there is evidence that in areas further to the south at certain seasons of 

the year hides were also used to cover huts providing better shelter in areas where 

there was high rainfall and strong winds.) Traditionally the door is a fairly low 

opening that is covered by a mat that can be rolled up and secured above it. In the 

warmer seasons a second door is often created on the opposite side of the 

structure. 

The preparation of the rushes and mats of a |haru oms


In the rainy season in the Richtersveld a double layer of mats is sufficient to provide 

adequate shelter as a good, closely sewn mat made from well dried rushes will 

swell within a few minutes to provide adequate waterproofing before moisture from 

the rains is able to penetrate to the second layer of matting. In the warmer season 

a single layer of mats is adequate to provide well ventilated shade and a shelter. 

This dual purpose makes the hut type unique and highly adapted to the extreme 

environment and variable weather in that it keeps the inhabitants dry and warm in 

the cold winter and cool in the extremely hot summers. 

A typical |haru oms 

Traditionally the |haru oms serves as a place in which to sleep at night, store one’s 

belongings and as shelter from the elements. It serves also as a cooking shelter 

when constructed in an only partially covered form. In contemporary villages of the 

Richtersveld the |haru oms is often found in conjunction with modern housing being 

used as additional sleeping accommodation or as a storeroom. In the villages, 

many cooking shelters are also found adjacent to the small cement brick or sheet 

metal homes that make up the bulk of building stock in the villages. 

Currently few |haru oms are built entirely from traditional mats although the frame 

remains wooden and is sourced locally in the traditional way. Whilst most structures 

will have at least some rush mats other materials that are now used include hessian 

cloth (salvaged from bags or bought by the metre), shade cloth and black or other


plastic sheeting. In some instances thin sheet metal (corrugated-iron or metal 

salvaged from cans and drums) replaces the lowest cordon of mats. To provide 

greater security the roll-down mat door is sometimes replaced by a variation on a 

conventional door. 

The traditional materials, however, are seeing a comeback, as a result of renewed 

pride in Nama culture and out of recognition of the high quality and better suitability 

of local natural materials. In the traditional method, frame staves are secured to one 

another using a fibre made from the bark of a certain tree. Today such thread is 

often hand-rolled from yarn recovered from unravelling hessian cloth, or rags torn 

into strips are used exclusively. The same hessian thread has also been used to 

replace indigenous fibre as the yarn used to sew the mats which are made using a 

long, broad needle that draws the thread through the rushes. This tradition is 

unique in Southern Africa where most cultures weave or plait rather than sew mats. 

In some areas there is colouring of rushes (using cow manure as a dye) for half of 

their length to create geometric patterns in finished mats, but this tradition is not 

evident in the Richtersveld where only occasionally there are deviations from a 

strictly lineal arrangement of rushes to create a geometric pattern in the ‘weave’ of 

the mat. Mats can vary in width from around 500mm to 1m and are usually three to 

four metres long. Width is dependent upon the length of rushes which is 

determined by the species of rush and grading of harvested rushes by length. 

In the Richtersveld today mats are made by familial groups of women, usually four 

to five sisters or cousins, often overseen by an elder woman (an aunt or mother) 

who take orders for mats from members of their community. These women work 

alone at home with the ‘team’ producing sufficient mats to cover an order. If poles 

are required they are usually cut and bent by a male member of the same family. 

The reasons for intrusion of alternative materials into the building technique of the 

Nama are many and varied, but broadly relate to:


- Availability of indigenous materials relative to alternatives: Rushes generally 

grow in the high mountain valleys and are not easy to access. They require 

heavy labour to harvest and time and attention to prepare for manufacturing into 

mats. 

- Cost of materials and ease of acquisition: Alternative materials are readily 

available in nearby towns (Springbok, Port Nolloth and Alexander Bay) and are 

often cheaper than rush mats. Mats have to be ordered from mat makers and in 

the case of a full hut may take several weeks to supply. The manufacturing 

process is labour intensive and costs are high. 

- Durability: Alternative materials are more durable. Generally mats last only a 

few months before they blacken and have to be moved to the cooking hut where 

they will be used for a few months more. 

Despite the above none of the alternative materials have the environmental 

advantages of the rush mat. None of them can provide both waterproof shelter in 

times of rain and well ventilated shade in times of heat. It is for this reason that the 

mat will remain in use as part of the covering of traditional shelters. In this regard it 

is interesting to note a comment made by the son of the first Commander of the 

Dutch colony who revisited Cape Town several years after spending his childhood 

there in the 1650s. He notes that many of the local KhoiKhoi used discarded 

canvas from ships sails to cover their homes. The intrusion of alternative materials 

is hence not a new phenomenon, it has been a factor for 350 years and yet the 

basic form and structural unit survive and traditional building techniques are 

perpetuated from generation to generation. 

Further to the above, it is interesting to note that up until the 1950’s colonists, 

farmers and missionaries, who settled in the Richtersveld used the |haru oms as 

shelter, its suitability to the environment being recognised as superior to traditional 

western modes of accommodation. 

The |haru oms is today found both in the villages and out in the field. As has 

already been noted in the villages it enjoys a variety of uses, whilst in the field, ie: 

the core area of this site, it is used exclusively for personal shelter and cooking. In 

the villages the units appear to be permanent and research conducted in Khuboes


the 2001 showed little movement of units since a previous mapping exercise in 

1995, although there was a significantly greater number of |haru oms over that six 

year period. This is indicative of the revival of cultural identity amongst the Nama in 

the post liberation period. Conversely |haru oms out in the field are still moved from 

stock post to stock post in the age old tradition of the south-western corner of 

Africa. The layout of stock posts follows a fairly typical tradition and occasionally 

combines a |haru oms with a structure that is not portable. 

2.b History and Development 

The describable history of the Richtersveld starts from 2000 million years ago when 

the first recognizable geological events occurred. Ever since and until modern day 

the unusual landscape and climate of the Richtersveld have influenced the modes 

of survival of the Richtersveld’s plants and animals and, finally, also its people. All 

life in the Richtersveld has been and continues to be influenced by its severe 

temperature fluctuations, the arid, craggy, mountainous landscape, the difficult to 

negotiate sandy plains and the cool air and fog deposits which originate from the 

cold Benguela current of the Atlantic Ocean. These factors have made the 

Richtersveld a unique community of plants, animals and societies which have 

speciated and evolved in often radical ways to cope and succeed in one of Africa’s 

most difficult environments. The Richtersveld Community Conservancy comprises a 

large area in the most undisturbed part of the Richtersveld representing all of the 

aforementioned factors. 

Fossil records extend back to 300 million years and the evolution of life has tracked 

the dramatic changes in the environment over time. 17 million years ago much of 

the region was forested and inhabited by giant horses, bear-dogs, giant shrews and 

four-tusked elephants. As the forests disappeared and the region dried and became 

warmer, the biota evolved accordingly. Plants decreased in size, became highly 

adapted to specific microhabitats, found ways to conserve water in becoming 

succulent and strategised to create or seek out cooler aspects of the environment. 

Despite the aridity, the rich biodiversity and the permanent waters of the Orange 

River enabled humans to survive in the region since the Early Stone Age, as can be


seen from archaeological remains in the area such as stone tools and middens, 

some extending back to between 250,000 and 10,000 years ago. 

The KhoiKhoi, the ancestors of the Nama people, once occupied the lands of the 

south-western part of Africa, (southern Namibia and most of what are today the 

Western and Northern Cape Provinces of South Africa). Together with those whom 

they called the San (Bushmen) and with whom they shared much of this area, they 

are generally regarded as the most ancient of human beings and are hence quite 

probably the custodians of the most ancient of cultures. 

A nomadic people, perhaps better termed as practitioners of transhumance, bands 

of KhoiKhoi migrated with their herds of cattle and sheep over relatively short 

distances and within territories that belonged to the clan of which they were a part. 

Movement took place on a seasonal basis, and the people lived in portable homes, 

|haru oms, that were easily transported by the pack oxen they used to carry their 

possessions from camp to camp. The legacy of the KhoiKhoi is very evident in the 

landscape of the sub-continent in the form of archaeology and rock art, the latter of 

which, whilst not as well-known as that of the San, is nevertheless an important 

record of human occupation of the region. 

The earliest written records concerning the KhoiKhoi date from the late 15 th Century 

when European explorers first made their way down the south-western cost of 

Africa and east along its southern coast. From that time onwards there is a 

substantial record of the culture and practices of this unique people and a history of 

their societies under the impact firstly of contact with and later occupation by 

Europeans of various nationalities. The first substantial record of KhoiKhoi cultural 

practices was made by the German academic Kolbe, who in the 1690s spent time 

at the Cape studying the indigenous people. He was followed by sundry travellers, 

missionaries and officials who over the next two centuries left impressions of the 

KhoiKhoi in the form of diaries, travelogues, government records and formal 

publications. There is also a fairly substantial 20 th Century academic literature on 

the KhoiKhoi which continues to grow in the current decade. 

Colonial Expansion and Displacement


At the time of first contact with Europeans, the KhoiKhoi were organised into clans 

which, whilst sharing similar language and cultural practices, occupied different 

territories, often in competition with one another and the San. Family groupings or 

bands within a clan moved from camp to camp over the course of the seasons with 

movement depending upon the condition of the grazing and availability of water. 

From fairly soon after the first rounding of the Cape in 1488 European travellers to 

and from the Far East put in along the southern and south-western coast of Africa 

to replenish water supplies and trade with the KhoiKhoi for much needed fresh 

meat. 

It was due to the need for a permanent source of fresh meat and water and a place 

in which to grow fresh produce to replenish its ships on the longs voyage from 

Europe to the East that in 1652 the VOC established a permanent station in the 

region at what is today Cape Town. The early history of the resulting livestock trade 

with the local KhoiKhoi and attempts to grow vegetables in the Company Gardens 

at Cape Town is well documented. Trade in livestock quickly became the source of 

the first major conflicts between indigenous South Africans and Europeans as 

pressure was exerted on the local representatives of the VOC to build up 

substantial herds of sheep and cattle in anticipation of the annual visits of the 

outgoing and incoming Dutch fleets. This rapidly led to stock shortages on the side 

of the KhoiKhoi and coercion, or common theft, was often the only means whereby 

the Dutch could acquire livestock. Within a few years of the establishment of Cape 

Town the local KhoiKhoi had moved away from the settlement or become 

impoverished due to the loss of their livestock. 

The result of livestock shortages and the inability of the Company to grow sufficient 

crops to replenish its fleets was that it was forced to find other means of acquiring 

the produce it needed. It was hence that in 1657 it introduced a system of freehold 

farming that created the first permanent European settlers on the sub-continent. In 

permitting the introduction of freehold farming the VOC envisaged agriculture on a 

similar scale and intensity to that which at the time prevailed in the Netherlands.


However, its policies, the economic conditions at the Cape and environmental 

considerations determined that this was not practical. 

This issue was particularly important in the determination of the fate of the KhoiKhoi 

and the other indigenous peoples of South Africa in that extensive farming 

techniques rapidly developed amongst the colonists, requiring vast areas of land 

and determining that within two hundred years European settlement in and 

domination of KhoiKhoi lands affected all but a small portion of their former 

territories. Once outside of the immediate environs of Cape Town climatic 

conditions are such that even once the VOC had resolved the issues that 

determined that its early experiments in intensive agriculture were a failure, 

extensive farming remained the only option for a widely dispersed settler 

community, many of whom were sufficiently far from the Cape and hence 

government authority, to be able to function outside of the reach of direct Company 

authority. This provided opportunity for European settlement to expand regardless 

of efforts by the VOC and its successors to impose limits. 

The frontiers of the colony at the Cape hence spread rapidly in an easterly and 

northerly direction with sporadic conflicts between colonists and the Company on 

the one hand and various clans of KhoiKhoi and San on the other. As land and 

livestock were lost most of the KhoiKhoi were out of desperation forced into the 

service of the Company (mainly in military service) or settler farmers. More often 

than not such employment was not an issue of choice, but of desperation and by 

the second half of the 18 th Century provided KhoiKhoi with a status not much better 

than slavery. Worse still was the scourge of diseases carried to Africa by the 

Europeans, in particular the Smallpox which in 1713 decimated the indigenous 

population. Those, perhaps more fortunate, found refuge in mission stations the first 

of which was established in 1738 at Genadendal, not far from Cape Town. 

However, ultimately and regardless of the options which individual KhoiKhoi may 

have been able to exercise, or the fate which befell them regardless, within a few 

generations and through processes of disease, dispersal, acculturation and 

intermarriage with settlers, slaves and other indigenous South Africans independent 

KhoiKhoi identity, language and culture disappeared from the vast swathes of land 

it had dominated for thousands of years.


Those who were able to avoid incorporation within the boundaries of the colony 

moved steadily ahead of the expanding frontier of colonial settlement disrupting the 

way of life of those KhoiKhoi that had yet to experience prolonged contact with 

Europeans. In the east by the 1770’s the colonial frontier came up against the more 

densely populated region occupied by the Xhosa and with the closing of that frontier 

the presence of people in that region who still identified themselves as KhoiKhoi 

rapidly disappeared. In the north the situation was somewhat different in that by the 

mid-18 th Century European settlement came up against the barrier mountains of the 

escarpment, beyond which is Bushmanland, a vast and arid expanse with an 

unreliable climate that was not particularly attractive to European settlers. Due to 

the mountains Bushmanland was difficult to access and was populated by San 

people who proved far more difficult to dislodge than their counterparts in the south. 

The northern boundary of this region, the fringes of the Kalahari and Namib deserts, 

is defined by the Orange, or in the KhoiSan languages, Gariep River system, the 

lifeblood of modern South Africa and a place which for many years represented a 

haven which, if it could be reached across the arid expanse of Bushmanland, 

presented an opportunity for independent survival beyond the grasp of colonial 

authority. Many displaced southern KhoiKhoi sought refuge here along with 

deserters from various colonial armies, escaped or manumitted slaves, convicts, 

criminals and others who had cause to make a life outside the colony. 

The middle reaches of the Gariep were already occupied by KhoiKhoi and San 

peoples as was the extreme western portion where the Nama still live today. The 

constant flow of refugees from the colony to the River over a period of a century or 

more caused severe disruption of these populations and for a time the area was 

subject to the predations of bands of brigands followed by the stabilising, but 

equally disruptive influence of missionaries who began operating along the Gariep 

in the first decade of the 19 th century. The brigandage and mix of population in the 

middle reaches of the Orange River along with the influences brought in by 

outsiders saw a substantial and rapid dilution of traditional KhoiKhoi culture and 

identity with continuing degradation during the course of the 19 th Century as outside 

influence increased and the area was absorbed into the colony in stages in the


latter half of the 19thCentury, ultimately leading to the almost complete 

disappearance of languages and identity early in the 20 th Century. 

The Namas of the Richtersveld 

The 20 th Century was a particularly dark time in the history of South Africa. For the 

surviving KhoiKhoi it was a period when their continued presence was denied by 

successive governments and eventually defined out of existence through its 

exclusion from the apartheid panoply of races and active suppression by being 

subsumed into the ‘Coloured’ racial category, a classification created for people of 

mixed descent. In the 20 th Century South Africans of all backgrounds were 

educated to believe that the KhoiKhoi were extinct surviving only as a proportion of 

the origins of the Coloured community, and at that a percentage that most 

descendants of the KhoiKhoi were encouraged to deny as the authorities sought to 

ensure that yet another racial identity did not surface to complicate an already 

unwieldy ideology. 

Notwithstanding the 20 th Century experience, the post-liberation period (since 1994) 

has seen the re-emergence of KhoiKhoi identity amongst so-called coloured people 

many of whom are showing an interest in rediscovery of roots in the pre-colonial 

indigenous communities of Southern Africa. It has also seen the re-emergence of 

the Nama, the last of the KhoiKhoi who still live and practice their culture along the 

west coast Africa. 

The home of the Nama is an undefined region that lies along the west coast of 

Africa stretching inland to well above the continent’s western escarpment. It 

includes the north-western parts of both the Western and Northern Cape Provinces 

of South Africa, referred to in the vernacular as Namaqualand, and much of 

southern Namibia. Some older maps show ‘Greater’ Namaqualand to be an area 

straddling the border of Namibia and South Africa, while ‘Smaller’ Namaqualand is 

confined to the South African side. It is a beautiful, but inhospitable land with a 

rough terrain and unpredictable climate and vast, unpopulated areas.


The part of the Namaqualand into which the Richtersveld falls became part of the 

Cape Colony in 1847 when Britain extended the boundary in the north-west to the 

Orange River. The area had been subject to European influences since the last 

quarter of the 1600’s when the first Dutch explorers reach the mouth of the Gariep. 

By the time of British annexation framers and missionaries had been a permanent 

feature of the area for at least a half century. The Germans occupation of northern 

Namaqualand in the 1880s also followed earlier penetration by Europeans, but 

nevertheless, by the early 20 th Century the area was the only one where a 

substantial KhoiKhoi community survived with its identity, language and culture 

relatively intact. Although impacted upon by the disruptions caused in the lands 

further to the south and prolonged migration and incorporation of refuges from that 

area, as well as by the incorporation of their own lands into the British and German 

colonies, probably due to its remoteness and isolation, impact was not as heavily 

felt as outside the formerly referred to ‘Coloured’ Reserve’. 

At the dawn of the new century one small part of the larger region of Namaqualand 

remains the only place where all three of the components of language, cultural 

practice and identity remain strongly routed in the people. This is the Richtersveld. 

In other places, most notably across the Gariep in Namibia language is still strong, 

but transhumance and traditional building techniques are no longer practiced. Small 

pockets of Nama also survive in South Africa to the south and east of the 

Richtersveld, but once again have not retained the strength of culture found there 

and are largely differentiated from other South Africans only because they speak a 

different language, although usually in a ‘broken’ form. 

More so than the rest of Namaqualand, the Richtersveld is a place of isolation and 

refuge. It is the connection between the environment and topography of the 

Richtersveld that has determined that in this area in particular a once extensive 

people survives and can continue to do so. The Richtersveld is drier, and due to its 

mountains more inaccessible and remote than the surrounding parts of 

Namaqualand. Until the recent popularity of 4x4 vehicles, it was an area into which 

few other South Africans could or desired to penetrate. Today most do so only for 

short periods of time for recreational purposes.


The land is not suited to commercial farming other than at certain points along the 

banks of the Gariep and mining is the only modern industry that has a presence in 

the area. This unique isolation and the ability of the people to adapt to and survive 

in an environment that has few attractions to outsiders has determined that it is 

here more than anywhere that KhoiKhoi identity and cultural practice is most intact 

and survives in its most viable form. 

In the 1940’s another group of “coloured” people arrived from an area 

approximately 400 kilometres to the east. This group of people had both white and 

KhoiKhoi ancestry and were referred to as the Bosluis Basters. Because of their 

mixed blood these Afrikaans-speaking sheep farmers were evicted from their lands 

in the east and sent on a great trek with their ox wagons to an area which the 

government had decided would be best for what they viewed a disgraceful group of 

people – the rugged, nearly waterless mountains of the Richtersveld. The Bosluis 

Basters endured the trek and ended their journey in what today is the town of 

Eksteenfontein (administrative headquarters of the Conservancy) where survivors 

from the great trek still remain to this day. There they met the Nama people along 

side whom they were ordered to live and the two groups had an uneasy beginning 

which over the years has evolved into a partnership for land ownership in the 

modern-day Sida !hub Communal Property Association (CPA). 

It has been a long journey for the people of the Richtersveld and one that has only 

recently been resolved in their favour with the restitution of title to the land that they 

occupy having taken place in 2003. Security of land tenure has determined that the 

culture and its practice are more secure than it has been for several hundred years. 

The people are now firmly the custodians of their own destiny determining how their 

land is used and are doing so in the firm knowledge that they alone have a right to 

use it. This has enabled the community to continue its predominantly pastoral 

livelihoods and to take the decision to set aside 160,000 hectares of well preserved 

land as a conservancy for the conservation of the area’s rich diversity of succulent 

plants and the preservation of traditional ways of life and the transhumance lifestyle 

of the Nama.


The years since the dawn of democracy in South Africa in 1994 have seen revival 

of many cultural practices suppressed under apartheid, but remembered by the 

older generation. The Nama language has also strengthened and is more openly 

spoken than was the case at a time when it was the subject of ridicule. Its 

introduction as a subject in local primary schools along with aspects of local culture 

being incorporated into the arts and culture curriculum bode well for the future and it 

is particularly interesting to note the role that young people have played in driving 

the process of nomination of part of the Richtersveld as a World Heritage Site, 

something that is indicative of a growing awareness of and pride in heritage. 

Up until now the Nama way of life, although likely a mere ghost of its former self as 

it must have been before colonialism, has survived nonetheless in the Richtersveld. 

Therefore, the declaration of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy as a World 

Heritage Site will add power to perhaps the most remarkable aspect of human life in 

the Richtersveld, one that sends a message to indigenous cultures elsewhere in the 

world, namely the triumph of ancient human lifestyles over adversity, hardship, 

marginalisation of all kinds, institutional brutality and the onslaught of westernisation 

and globalisation. 

The History of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

The process of creating the Richtersveld Community Conservancy consisted of 

several steps and was founded through an exhaustive public participation and 

community consultation process which involved the widest possible range of 

stakeholders and roleplayers. In a region and country where the history of 

dispossession is recent, complete involvement of the entire community has been 

necessary in order to give the Conservancy a strong and legitimate foundation. 

Because of the ecological and cultural value of the Conservancy area, support was 

provided by several conservation and heritage preservation organisations and 

service organisations such as Conservation International, GTZ/Transform, the 

Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) and EcoAfrica. 

The idea of creating a protected area first surfaced in writing in a Concept Paper for 

a GEF Small Grant that was submitted in early 1998 after extensive consultation


with the then Northern Namaqualand Tourism Task Group (NNTTG) that later 

evolved into the Richtersveld Tourism Association (RTA). Other groups took up the 

idea at various other stages, including the Eksteenfontein Youth Group. In 1999 a 

discussion group was created to discuss the possibility of a World Heritage Site. 

But the strongest thrust came during the Integrated Development Planning (IDP) 

process conducted by the Richtersveld Transitional Council in 1999 and 2000 

when the idea to form a communal heritage area received widespread support from 

community organisations and the broader community itself, leading to the 

Richtersveld Conservancy being included in the IDP as a Land Development 

Objective (LDO). 

Generally speaking, the following series of progressive events marked the 

development of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy: 

• 1998: A Concept Paper was developed by EcoAfrica in consultation with the 

Northern Namaqualand Tourism Task Group (NNTTG) and submitted to the 

Global Environment Facility (GEF) in January 1998. Later the same year a 

Reference Group was elected to develop a Management Plan for the proposed 

Richtersveld Community Heritage Area. 

• 2000: Incorporation of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy/Heritage Area 

into the first Integrated Development Plan (IDP) was produced by the 

Richtersveld Transitional Council that was incorporated later that year into the 

broader Richtersveld Municipality.. 

• 2001: The First Operational Plan was developed for the Heritage Area. 

• 2002: The Richtersveld Community Heritage Area evolved into a “Community 

Conservancy” and was included in the 2002 Richtersveld IDP. 

• 2002: First Concept Management Plan was developed. 

• 2002: The Richtersveld Community Conservancy was included in 2003 

Richtersveld IDP. 

• 2003: Second Concept Management Plan was developed. 

• 2003/2004: Traditional cultural ties with //Gamaseb were revived through 

historic cross-border trips to the Bondelswarts community of Namibia’s 

//Gamaseb Communal Conservancy.


• 2004: Third Concept Management Plan was developed. This was presented to 

and accepted by the Richtersveld Community. 

• 2004: A new structure called the Management Committee was elected to 

replace the temporary Reference Group and to implement the Management 

Plan for a Richtersveld Community Conservancy. 

• 2004: Conservancy Manager and Administrative Officer were appointed. 

• 2004: A Feasibility Study for a World Heritage Site in the Richtersveld was 

completed. Funding is made available for a full nomination. 

• 2005: Northern Cape Province opens discussions with the Management 

Committee over handing over the Helskloof Provincial Reserve for inclusion in 

the Conservancy and to be managed by the Conservancy Management. 

• 2005: Government support arrives to develop infrastructure. Department of 

Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) allocates 6 million Rand 

(equivalent to $1 million) to the development of protective measures, signage, 

patrol roads and demarcated campsites in the Conservancy. 

• 2005: Richtersveld Community Conservancy is proposed as a World Heritage 

Site following numerous earlier meetings and references in the IDP and the 

Annual Report of the Richtersveld Sida !hub Community Property Association 

(CPA). 

• 2005: Process begins to declare the Richtersveld Community Conservancy as a 

formally gazetted Heritage Area. 

Currently, the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is gaining national and 

international appeal as South Africa’s last wild place where one can experience 

wilderness and gain insight into different cultures and traditional pastoralism. 

Campsites have been demarcated, regulations are in place, and entrance fees are 

now charged for people entering and camping in the Conservancy. It remains first 

and foremost a biological reserve receptive to researchers and scientists who visit 

from around the world and a research station is being developed. It also remains a 

stronghold for a threatened culture and way of life, protecting the land and local 

people against exploitation by others. 

History of discussions around World Heritage in the Richtersveld


The period post-1994 in South Africa saw sweeping changes and fundamental 

transformations as the government achieved democracy. One of these changes 

was a shift toward a renewed appreciation of the cultural and natural heritage and 

its need for public recognition and protection. As a result, South Africa ratified the 

World Heritage Convention in 1997 and has demonstrated the value it places on 

cultural and natural heritage, through the National Heritage Resources Act of 1999 

(which replaced the outdated National Monuments Act), the National Heritage 

Convention Act of 1999 and the World Heritage Convention Act of 1999 which 

paved the way for six of South Africa’s most unique cultural and natural heritage 

areas being included on the World Heritage List. In addition, white papers and 

policies that were re-drafted post-1994 frequently acknowledge the importance of 

conserving the country’s cultural and natural assets. 

When South Africa signed the Convention, it compiled a tentative list, which 

included the Richtersveld Cultural Landscape. Since then, the idea of establishing a 

World Heritage Site in the Richtersveld has been a well discussed and researched 

one, specifically amongst the communities of the Richtersveld. Throughout the past 

few years it has been often mentioned in workshops, reports, Integrated 

Development Plans (IDPs), annual reports of the Richtersveld Sida !hub 

Community Property Association (CPA), newspapers and brochures concerning the 

region. The Richtersveld News, a local newspaper in the Richtersveld Municipality, 

has discussed the World Heritage Site process in five editions 5 . Not only were these 

articles written by or with contributions from local community members, but they 

served also to introduce the World Heritage Site process and to highlight the 

region’s rich heritage and the case to be made for World Heritage Site status. 

Additionally, the World Heritage Site process has been discussed at the local level 

in various workshops, including four workshops held specifically for the World 

5 Specific articles include: Hartney, D. “Training on the Island”, Richtersveld Nuus, Nommer 3, Lente 

2001; Van der Westhuizen, V., “Die Richtersveld NORAD Program”, Richtersveld Nuus, Nommer 

1, Herfs 2001; Hartney, D., “Preparing for World Heritage Standards”, Richtersveld Nuus, Nommer 

7, Somer 2002; Anon, “Global Environment Facility will support projects in the Richtersveld”, 

Richtersveld Nuus, Nommer 2, Winter 2001; and Thornton, M. (November, 2005) “A World Heritage 

Site in the Richtersveld!”, Richtersveld Nuus, Volume 2, Edition 1.


Heritage Site process in the Richtersveld 6 . Two specific workshops (the Integrated 

Conservation and Development Workshop in April, 2001 in Alexander Bay and the 

‘Unfolding the Big Picture’ Workshop in May, 2002 in Cape Town) contributed to 

gathering input towards the process. The sentiment towards preserving heritage 

was voiced by local members of the Richtersveld community who presented short 

papers on the justification for a World Heritage Site in the Richtersveld. These 

workshops are still referred to as significant launching points for the World Heritage 

Site process and where enthusiasm for the recognition of heritage in the 

Richtersveld was officially recognised and further boosted. 

The topic of World Heritage has been discussed in the management meetings of 

the Sida !hub Community Property Association (CPA), as well as council meetings 

of the Richtersveld Municipality. The NORAD Richtersveld Heritage Project and 

DEA&T have also specifically focused on putting culture high on the agenda as well 

as harnessing local support for World Heritage Site status. The Richtersveld 

Heritage Project was engaged over a three-year period in boosting cultural tourism 

and raising awareness for a World Heritage Site in the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy. It did so by training cultural guides, setting up a museum network, 

supporting culture and nature-based small business, providing exposure and 

heritage training to selected individuals, collaborating with filming projects, 

recording cultural heritage, building links with relevant institutions and publishing 

articles on cultural heritage written by local people. 

The Richtersveld Heritage Project was instrumental in collecting cultural and 

historical artefacts pertaining to the history of the Nama and Bosluis Baster people 

as well as recording valuable oral history from the older people. These important 

pieces are now preserved in the new Eksteenfontein Museum. The team members 

of the Richtersveld Heritage Project also participated in several activities to build 

6 The “Integrated Conservation and Development Workshop – Building Partnerships for Sustainable 

& Equitable Resource Use”. Odendaal and Hartney (eds), 2001, was held in Alexander Bay on 2-3 

April, 2001;The Richtersveld “Unfolding the Big Picture Workshop” was held on 2-3 May 2002 in 

Cape Town; the workshop titled “Tentatively listed Richtersveld World Heritage Site” was held on 

15 January 2002 on site in the town of Sandrift in the Richtersveld; and a two day site workshop of 

the region titled “Summary of discussions around the proposed Richtersveld World Heritage Site” 

was held between 5-7 November, 2002.


links between the Conservancy and related existing World Heritage Sites. A field 

trip was undertaken to the Robben Island World Heritage Site where team 

members noted the similarities with the Conservancy in regards to segregation and 

social deprivation. A larger field trip was undertaken to Norway to learn about the 

similarities between the Nama people and the Sami people whose culture and 

cultural landscape is recognized in the Laponian Area World Heritage Site in 

Sweden. Links were also established with the Alta World Heritage Site Museum. 

These visits were vital in the establishing an understanding of and foundation for 

the World Heritage Process in the Richtersveld Community. Later the Environment 

Minister of Norway again invited Richtersvelders to participate in World 

Environment Day in Trondheim in 2004 where they had the opportunity to visit the 

emerging World Heritage Site of Vega which is now fully declared and operational. 

Local government support for the Conservancy being a World Heritage Site is also 

demonstrated in local government publications, where the Richtersveld 

Municipality’s IDPs of 2000, 2002, and 2003 include points about World Heritage 

Site nomination for the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. IDP 2002 states: 

“As for the proposed Richtersveld World Heritage Site, a good relationship has 

been established with the Northern Cape Arts and Culture Department and a way 

forward has been identified: to conduct a feasibility study and investigate possible 

management options for the proposed (World Heritage) site.” 

To facilitate the on-going discussion of the World Heritage Site process is the 

Distance Learning and Information Sharing Tool (DLIST; www.dlist.org), an internet 

portal focusing on community heritage and development along the coast of 

Namibia, Angola and South Africa. It has been used as a forum for discussion for 

World Heritage Site in the Conservancy and also has facilitated the link across the 

Orange River to make the cultural and natural connection between the South 

African and Namibian cultural areas. To build on this process, cross border visits 

were initiated in 2003 and 2004, where local people of the Richtersveld travelled to 

//Gamaseb Conservancy and the town of Warmbad to strengthen the cross border 

revival of Nama culture.


3. Justification 

Until recently, the harsh lands of South Africa’s northwestern border with Namibia 

were regarded by many as a forbidding wasteland. However, closer examination 

revealed a mountainous desert alive with thousands of species of unusual 

succulent plants, many proving to be endemic, and a unique pastoral culture 

spanning back two thousand years to the early transition from hunter gatherer to 

pastoral livelihoods of a branch of KhoiKhoi, known as the Nama people. The 

Richtersveld National Park was developed to preserve components of the 

biodiversity and wilderness and the Nama culture, architecture, language and 

transhumance livelihoods gained recognition as a very special part of South Africa’s 

social diversity. These two aspects of the Richtersveld – culture and nature – have 

revealed themselves as being inextricable from each other. In the Richtersveld, 

humans and their traditional livelihoods have become part of the environment and, 

conversely, the environment has shaped human culture through thousands of years 

of survival and growth in an extreme environment with limited water, the 

impossibility of agriculture and severe temperature conditions. 

What has emerged is a community-owned and -managed protected area 

comprising one of the richest and scientifically most important areas in the 

Succulent Karoo Biome and the last remaining stronghold of Nama people living a 

transhumance existence. This area, called the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy, is justified in being including the World Heritage Site list, as an 

important natural and cultural site of outstanding universal value. This justification 

for inclusion in the World Heritage list, is significantly supported by reports by IUCN, 

ICOMOS, and UNEP pertaining to “filling the gaps.” In this regard – filling gaps 

where the World Heritage Site list has little or no representation – the 

Conservancy’s rich and unique biodiversity, cultural landscape and examples of 

traditional human settlement and interactions with the environment provide sound 

evidence for why it can fill these gaps in many ways and be justifiably enscripted as 

a World Heritage Site. 

The recognition of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy’s biological 

importance by international conservation bodies is wide and strong. The Succulent


Karoo, of which the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is a core area, is one of 

only 34 Biodiversity Hotspots worldwide, as recognized by Conservation 

International. It is one of only two to exist in a desert. It is one of only two to be 

based entirely on high floral richness, endemism and degree of threat. It is a cold 

mountain desert adorned with thousands of succulents which, under spring 

blossom, turn an arid expanse into a multi-coloured wonder. Endemic to the 

Richtersveld, almost all of the world’s population of Aloe pillansii, a flagship species 

for the region growing up to ten metres high, exists inside of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy. It is a threatened species and one of few species 

believed to be decreasing as a direct result of climate change. But the most 

significant ecological feature of the Richtersveld is its succulent species numbers 

and endemism. It is well documented that the Gariep Centre of Plant Endemism 

has the richest variety of succulent plants (primarily the Mesembryanthmaceae 

family) on earth and the Conservancy is considered a central part of the Centre. 

60% are known to be endemic just to the region, and estimates of species numbers 

and endemism rates are regarded as conservative, since new species are being 

found and large areas remain unstudied. In years to come, it is certain that new 

species will be uncovered. The Gariep Centre and the Richtersveld are also 

considered important to science in regard to evolutionary processes, with many 

succulent groups in states of active speciation. 

According to the IUCN’s report entitled, “The World Heritage List. Future 

priorities for a credible and complete list of natural and mixed sites (April, 

2004)”, there are major gaps in the World Heritage List in the Cold Winter Deserts 

category. The number of natural / mixed sites by Udvardy Biomes shows alarmingly 

that there is not one cold winter desert included in the World Heritage list, and the 

Succulent Karoo is specifically discussed as a notable Udvardy Biogeographical 

Province not included on the list. More specifically, IUCN/SSC Global Habitat 

Analysis determined that of 10 main habitat types suggested to be priorities for 

World Heritage inclusion, one is the Succulent Karoo. Of World Wildlife Fund’s 

Global 200 Ecoregions not represented, one is the Karoo Desert (another being the 

Benguela Current, as a marine site, which borders the Karoo and Namib deserts 

and determines much of the climate of the Succulent Karoo). Regarding 

Conservation International’s Biodiversity Hotspots, the Succulent Karoo is one of


only three of the world’s designated 25 hotspots not to have World Heritage Site 

status. The Succulent Karoo is also a Centre of Plant Diversity not included as a 

World Heritage Site. 

The “Global Overview of Protected Areas on the World Heritage List of 

Particular Importance for Biodiversity (November, 2000)” highlights species 

richness, endemism, threatened species as crucial areas of focus for conservation 

and World Heritage status, specifically to “natural criteria iv”. The report identified 

the Succulent Karoo as one of four deserts in the world which should be considered 

for World Heritage Site inscription and one of only fourteen specifically named 

areas which demand attention for inscription as a World Heritage Site. Since it 

highlights as an emphasis “Representation” (of ecosystems, landscapes, habitat, 

and species conservation through effective Protected Area systems and ecological 

networks), then the Richtersveld Community Conservancy becomes a logical 

inscription. In summary, most literature regarding gaps in the World Heritage Site 

list, make direct reference to the Succulent Karoo as a priority. With the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy as arguably the richest component of the 

Succulent Karoo Biome, the Conservancy will well represent the World Heritage 

Convention as a fully justifiable site. 

From a cultural standpoint, the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is the last 

refuge of Nama people living a transhumance lifestyle. This occurs no place else in 

South Africa. It is also one of the few places in South Africa where the language of 

Nama remains widely spoken. It is the only place remaining where the Nama still 

reside in intricately constructed portable rush domehuts called |haru oms. It is also 

the only place left in South Africa where pastoral people reside in large communal 

traditional lands. What exists in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy is an 

outstanding representation of human interrelationships with the environment, in this 

case a fiercely harsh environment, and a lasting testimony to a way of life – 

transhumance. The Nama’s pastoralist lifestyle is one of the earliest forms of 

livelihood where humans have control over the environment. The traditional 

management systems have over two thousand years conserved through 

sustainable use of the grazing resource a large area of Succulent Karoo vegetation.


The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is a unique, threatened, and globally 

significant cultural landscape. In Africa in particular, there is little recognition of 

traditional cultural landscapes, architecture and the age-old pastoral way of life. 

Transhumance has been identified as an element underrepresented in the World 

Heritage list, and it is transhumance which perhaps best describes the pastoral way 

of the life which still endures amongst the Nama people. The ICOMOS analysis, 

“The World Heritage List: Filling the Gaps – an Action Plan for the Future 

(February, 2004) supports this argument in stating, “Surviving nomadic pastoralist 

cultures are currently represented by a single inscription, that of the Laponian Area 

(Sweden)…” Africa – home to some of the most diverse and widespread pastoral 

societies on earth – has not one site. More generally, the analysis highlights that 

African peoples seem to come up short in comparison to Europeans and others. 

Additionally, The Expert Meetings on Global Strategy (1994-1998) stated that: 

“all living cultures – and especially “traditional” ones – with their depth, their wealth, 

their complexity, and their diverse relationships with their environment, figured very 

little on the list…” Africa, a continent with more ethnic groups and languages than 

any other, has only a handful of the occurrences on the list of cultural sites (as 

opposed to almost 50% by Europe), and Southern Africa has relatively few cultural 

sites which is astonishing for a region with such cultural diversity. 

The ICOMOS analysis highlighted certain areas as having high potential to fill the 

gaps in the World Heritage list. These include “Human Coexistence with the Land” 

(movement of people (nomadism); settlement; modes of subsistence; and 

technological evolution) and “Human Beings in Society” (human interaction; cultural 

coexistence; spirituality; and creative expression). It can well be argued that the 

Richtersveld has all of these factors. It represents the “movement of people” 

through the transhumance existence of seasonal movement of livestock and home 

between grazing areas. It represents “settlement and technological evolution” 

through the enduring complex design of the |haru oms architecture. It represents 

“modes of subsistence” through two thousand years of surviving from livestock 

raising. It represent “human interaction and cultural coexistence” through the 

relationship between the Nama and the Bosluis Basters, a historically 

disadvantaged group “discarded” by the Apartheid Government to survive in the 

remote land of the Nama. It represents “spirituality and creative expression” as


etched in the petroglyphs, as demonstrated in ancient Nama graves throughout the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy, as continuing in the oral tradition of specific 

locations, such as the fabled sinkhole called Wondergat. 

3.a Criteria (using Operational Guidelines of February 2005) 

Cultural criterion (iv) 

The landscape of seasonal movements spanning back millennia illustrates 

effectively a period of time when the environment, the climate and the seasons 

determined largely where humans lived and how they lived. This has not changed 

for the Nama who today must move home, livestock and family from high-country 

winter grazing areas to lower summer areas. The ancient gravesites, relicts of 

former livestock posts, migration trails, wells, petroglyphs and legend and oral myth 

attached to mountains, sinkholes, springs and, not least, the !Gariep (Orange) River 

all make up a cultural landscape that has been active for two thousand years. And 

this way of life extends back into the history of most people on earth before humans 

were able to take better control over their environment. 

Cultural Landscape Criterion 

Annex 3 of the Operational Guidelines, describing the inherent human and 

environmental relationships in Cultural Landscapes reads: 

“The continued existence of traditional forms of land-use supports biological 

diversity in many regions of the world. The protection of traditional landscapes is 

therefore helpful in maintaining biological diversity.” 

The Cultural Landscape of the Richtersveld demonstrates well the ability of the 

Nama to maintain traditional pastoral livelihoods without adversely impacting on the 

environment. This is especially important, perhaps more so than in other regions, in 

light of the status of their environment as a Biodiversity Hotspot. With Nama 

habitation and pastoralism spanning back two thousand years and the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy regarded as a refuge for the Succulent Karoo flora, this is


testimony to and a valuable example of the ability of humans to utilize their natural 

resources in a sustainable manner so as not to adversely affect the environment. 

The history of the Nama’s existence in the Conservancy area and their traditional 

management of the Conservancy land is proof of this. 

Additionally, the |haru oms is a form of architecture not reproduced by any other 

group of people except the Nama. Recognized as one of 100 endangered sites by 

World Monuments Watch, the |haru oms requires an intricate construction process 

and indigenous knowledge which has been largely lost in other Nama areas outside 

of the Richtersveld. The |haru oms in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

remain a part of the semi-nomadic lifestyle of the Nama pastoralists. Being 

constructed out of reed mats and light crafted poles, materials of which are only 

found in the Nama region, the |haru oms was designed to be easily disassembled, 

transported and erected again. This mobile design was necessary to support their 

transhumance lifestyle of the movement of family, home and livestock according to 

the seasons. 

Cultural criterion (v) 

The culture and transhumance of the Nama represents one of humanity’s oldest 

forms of land use. The Nama people are the last of the KhoiKhoi people (offshoots 

of the original KhoiSan), once a widespread nomadic pastoral group, to continue 

living in nomadic pastoral tradition. As ancestors of the earliest inhabitants of 

southern Africa, the Nama of the Richtersveld have maintained a cultural tradition 

that is wholly unique in its customs and lifestyle. The Nama traditional 

transhumance land use of pastoralism has been lost amongst other Nama people 

outside of the Richtersveld Communal Lands and also has been lost by all other 

South African peoples. The Nama of the Richtersveld bear the only surviving 

testimony to a way of life that formerly spanned amongst their KhoiKhoi ancestors 

from the Cape of Good Hope to current day Namibia and amongst other African 

peoples throughout the country. Despite the survival of this land use and age-old 

relationship with the environment, the Nama have faced and continue to face 

enormous pressure. Colonialism and institutionalized racism of Apartheid sought to 

eradicate cultural identity and tradition, often denouncing Nama ways as primitive


and worthless. Social pressures, the lure of better lives in cities, poverty and the 

impact of modern forms of architecture and livelihoods such as diamond mining on 

the use of the |haru oms and on pastoralism continue to pose threats to the 

traditional Nama way of life. 

Natural criterion (ix) 

The richness and uniqueness of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy’s flora is 

a result of a number of environmental factors coming together to create a unique 

and dynamic environment. Cold fog deposits from the Atlantic, an arid environment, 

varied topography and temperature fluctuations have resulted in biodiversity that 

has had to evolve specifically to survive in such an unusual and extreme 

environment. Flora, in particular, have radiated into a wide variety of species and 

families adapted to exist in highly specific microenvironments, some occurring only 

on certain mountaintops or quartz fields. The methods used by plants for 

conserving water, shielding from the sun and protecting themselves from high 

winds are seen in the morphology, physiology, distribution ranges and the 

relationships between particular species and their specific microenvironment. In 

some species such as the Aloe dichotoma the population densities differ between 

summer and winter rainfall zones. The Conservancy exists in the transition between 

these two rainfall zones and as such is a living laboratory of the Aloe dichotoma, as 

well as the Aloe pillansii, a near endemic to the Conservancy, and many other 

species. 

Natural criterion (x) 

The Succulent Karoo Region is one of the world’s 34 Biodiversity Hotspots. This is 

based on the extraordinary diversity and endemism rates in the biome which is 

home to an estimated 6,356 species of plants of which 2,439 are endemic. A 38.4% 

endemism rate is one of the highest in the world, and the highest of any desert. 

40% of the world’s 10,000 species of succulents are found in the Succulent Karoo. 

The Succulent Karoo has an exceptionally large species to genus ratio, especially 

for an arid region. Over 63 genera of the Mesembryanthemaceae are endemic to 

the Succulent Karoo Region, a very high number for a floral region of its size. Of the


Succulent Karoo, the Gariep Centre is regarded as the richest with over 2700 

species and with 80% of its endemics being succulents. The Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy captures a core area of the Gariep Centre and provides a 

diversity of environments including mountains, quartz fields and valleys enabling a 

wide range of species to exist. These attributes make the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy one of the most important properties for biodiversity conservation, a 

sentiment echoed by IUCN and Conservation International amongst others. 

Pachypodium namaquanum (halfmens) and Aloe pillansii: two flagship species of the Richtersveld 

The Richtersveld also has specific species of great value culturally and 

scientifically. Pachypodium namaquanum is also known as the “halfmens” is one of 

the flagship species for the desert regions of southern Namibia and northern South 

Africa, and is regarded highly in Nama culture 7 . The Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy represents a refuge for a large population of halfmens, as well as 

nearly all of the known specimens of Aloe pillansii, an equally large and impressive 

plant thought to be decreasing in numbers as a result of climate change. In 

summary, some of the highest endemism rates in the world, two highly endangered 

7 The halfmens plant attains a length and stature that reminds one of a human over a distance. It has a 

heavy head that is always bend to the north, likely to increase solarisation in the winter months (it 

loses the leaves in summer as a measure to combat water loss). This overall appearance gave rise to 

the legend that the halfmens plants really are humans who fled across the !Gariep from Namibia and 

then turned into plants, now longingly staring to the north where their ancestors came from, unable to 

be reunited with them. In that sense the plant is very much an allegory of the Nama nation itself that 

has become divided by an international border.


flagship species, the richest variety of succulents on earth, florally the richest arid 

region on earth, and the extraordinary richness of the Mesembryanthemaceae 

family justifies that the Richtersveld Community Conservancy meets this criterion 

and is universally valuable to science and conservation. 

3.b Proposed Statement of Outstanding Universal Value 

The Richtersveld has the highest botanical diversity and rates of endemism of any 

arid region representing more succulent flora than any other part of the world with 

plants exhibiting unique ecological techniques to enable them to survive in such an 

extreme environment, and a cultural landscape encompassing the two thousand 

year old transhumance pastoral livelihood of the Nama people and their sustainable 

use of and relationship with the environment of the Succulent Karoo Biodiversity 

Hotspot. 

These factors together converge to present a unique environment of one of the 

world’s most important sites for the conservation and study of succulent flora and 

the preservation of a livelihood which was once a common way of life throughout 

the world. 

3.c. Comparative Analysis 

Several existing World Heritage Sites can be compared to the Richtersveld in 

regards to biodiversity, cultural heritage and cultural landscape. Through a 

comparative analysis, numerous similarities emerge between other sites and the 

Conservancy which reveal it as not only comparable in terms of World Heritage 

justification but also highly unique. The analysis underpinned just how different and 

valuable the Conservancy is, when compared to other deserts and other pastoral 

cultures on the list. Compared World Heritage Sites included the following: 

• Laponian Area, Sweden 

• Hortobagy National Park, Hungary 

• Pyrenees – Mont Perdu, France and Spain 

• Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley, Andorra


• Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape, Mongolia 

• Pirin National Park, Bulgaria 

• Valle de Mai Nature Reserve, Seychelles 

• Arabian Oryx Sanctuary, Oman 

• Banc d’Arguin National Park – Mauritania 

• Cape Floral Kingdom, South Africa 

Five of the above sites can be compared to the Richtersveld in regards to cultural 

heritage of pastoral communities and cultural landscapes. The Laponian Area of 

Sweden, the Hortobagy National Park of Hungary, Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley of 

Andorra, Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape of Mongolia, and the Pyrenees – Mont 

Perdu Area of France and Spain are described as cultural landscapes with 

traditional societies living in such a way that is rarely found in modern times. They 

are described as remnants of what was once a widespread and common lifestyle. 

The people of both the Richtersveld and the Laponian Area and Orkhon Valley 

undoubtedly live hard lives under extreme climatic conditions in great wilderness 

areas of profound beauty and ruggedness. They exist because of their remoteness 

and the will of their people to carry on traditional ways of life. All aforementioned 

sites also demonstrate a traditional way of life enduring despite of enormous social 

change elsewhere in their respective countries. 

The Nama people, however, represent one of the oldest groups of people on earth. 

As descendants of the KhoiKhoi, they are of Africa’s oldest people, whose culture 

spans back to well before the Bantu expansion from West and Central Africa. 

Southern Africa has been the home of the Nama and their KhoiKhoi ancestors 

since the earliest periods of humanity. Their “click-sounding” language is purely 

indigenous to Africa, and together with the languages of the San people and a few 

scattered hunter-gatherer tribes such as the Hadza, Sandawe and Pygmy people of 

East and Central Africa, is not only endangered but a true symbol of their ancient, 

ancestral link to the continent. It is this ancient characteristic of the Nama which 

truly sets it apart from many other groups of people and pastoral communities. 

Even the Masai pastoralists of East Africa, which are considered to be a symbol of


traditional African pastoralism, are very young in their history in Tanzania and 

Kenya in comparison to the Nama. 

Several of the cultural sites mentioned above have been also described in regards 

to the value of their traditional architecture, such as the summer settlements of the 

Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley. The Richtersveld could be compared to numerous 

other sites in regards to the cultural significance of the |haru oms. However, in 

differing from other simple mud or traditional stone huts or structures, the |haru oms 

is an intricate type of building made by no other group except the Nama. The 

portable rush-mat covered domed hut is constructed in phases over several months 

in a complicated and communally involved process, and is listed by World 

Monuments Watch, alongside World Heritage Sites in Bam and Luxor, as one of the 

one hundred most endangered monuments. 

Traditional cultures often transcend current political boundaries, as demonstrated 

by the sites in Hungary, Sweden, France and Spain. The Nama of the Richtersveld 

are no exception. Prior to the 1884 Berlin Conference, colonialism and subsequent 

Apartheid, the land of the Namas spanned the border between Namibia and South 

Africa with the Orange River (!Gariep in the language of the Nama) serving as a 

cultural epicentre. Despite a history of measures to sterilize cultural identity and the 

historic prevention of Nama people from crossing the border, transfrontier links 

remain in tact and are again strengthening. The transfrontier character of the Nama 

people provides an accurate representation of the many traditional areas across the 

continent disrupted by colonially designed political boundaries. 

What else emerges from the comparative analysis is that four of the five sites are 

located in Europe. The Namas are African, representing well a continent where 

nomadic pastoralism and transhumance are deeply rooted in a multitude of 

cultures. And while pastoralism is practiced throughout the continent, nowhere are 

the pressures between traditional pastoral livelihood and modern society more 

evident than in the Richtersveld of South Africa, a country riding a fine line between 

two ways of life: the traditional and the modern. In this regard, the Richtersveld is 

outstanding in its testimony to a way of life largely extinct in most places and in its 

endurance to exist and thrive. In comparison between the Richtersveld and the


newly inscripted Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley, one finds that the people of both 

areas have survived many social and economic changes which have challenged 

their ways of life. In fact, most of the mentioned sites represent the last pockets of 

traditional cultures in Hungary, Sweden, France, Spain and, indeed, South Africa, 

where, just as these European cultures were able to survive massive social 

pressures, the Namas - by virtue of the fact of living in so desolate a region - were 

able to emerge from colonialism and institutionalized racism under the Apartheid 

government with their culture in tact, even if continually threatened. 

From a point of view of natural attributes, five sites can be compared to the 

Richtersveld. Clearly, the Cape Floral Kingdom has important similarities with the 

Succulent Karoo biome of the Richtersveld. Both biomes are distinctly Southern 

African, with vegetation existing in no other place on earth. Both, as recognized 

Biodiversity Hotspots, are extraordinary in regards to their plant life. However, the 

Richtersveld is a desert, and in biological terms, the richest desert on earth. 

Although the fynbos vegetation can boast a higher number of species than the 

Succulent Karoo, it is arguably more remarkable that the Succulent Karoo holds as 

many species as it does being an arid environment. Additionally, the Succulent 

Karoo is arguably more unusual in that there is no other truly similar vegetation type 

and environment, whereas the fynbos, despite its high levels of endemism, has 

close similarities to the kwongan vegetation of Southwestern Australia. 

If one compares the Richtersveld to other winter-rainfall deserts, such as Morocco’s 

southern coastline, Chile’s southern Atacama and Baja California of Mexico, just 

the Namaqualand portion alone (with the Richtersveld as a core) of the Succulent 

Karoo has between four and six times as many species of plants. The other deserts 

are also lacking the great numbers of leafy succulents and bulbs which enable the 

Succulent Karoo desert to provide its impressive displays of blooming flowers. 

These other similar-sized winter-rainfall deserts, despite some interesting species, 

consist of mainly stem succulent plants such as cacti and euphorbia and stapeliads, 

and leafy shrubs, but lack the unique diversity of miniature, ‘contracted’ plants, such 

as tylecodons, crassulas and lithops which exist in the Succulent Karoo’s shallow 

quartz-stone fields and gravel plains and which give the area a habitat type and 

appearance unique to the biome.


Looking within the Succulent Karoo biome itself, there are strong cases for the 

Richtersveld as its richest component, often described as “a hotspot within a 

hotspot”. No other part of the Succulent Karoo can boast even near the numbers of 

succulent plant species as the Richtersveld’s Gariep Centre of Plant Diversity, 

which as just part of the greater Succulent Karoo Biome, has more succulent 

species at 448 than the entire Fynbos Biome’s 435. The Gariep Centre also boasts 

more succulent species than all other Centres of Plant Diversity, such as the Little 

Karoo, Knersvlakte and Hantam-Roggeveld. The Gariep Centre also has the 

highest number of total plant species (2700) in the biome, the highest endemism 

rate of total plant species (20.7%), and the highest number of Genera (27). 

Comparison between Southern African Floral Regions and Endemism 

Centres with regard to succulent species numbers and endemism % 

Region / Centre of Endemism Species / infraspecific taxa % of endemics 

1. Succulent Karoo Region (Entire) 1,075 53.8% 

Gariep Centre 448 80% 

Knersvlakte Centre 111 74% 

Little Karoo Centre 203 81% 

Worcester-Robertson Karoo 

Centre 

89 77.4% 

Hantam-Roggeveld Centre 58 23.2% 

2. Cape Floristic Region 435 7.8% 

3. Maputaland-Pondoland Region 270 15% 

4. Albany Centre 364 60.6% 

5. Drakensburg Alpine Centre 20 5% 

6. Barberton Centre 22 27.5% 

7. Wolkberg Centre 25 19.2% 

8. Sekhukhuneland Centre 15 15% 

9. Soutpansberg Centre 21 46.6% 

10. Chimanimani-Nyanga Centre 23 23% 

11. Great Dyke Centre 5 20% 

12. Kaokoveld Centre 73 45.6% 

13. Griqualand Centre 13 32.5%


As the table above demonstrates, the Succulent Karoo is home to over one 

thousand endemic succulents. With more succulents than any other place in the 

world, the Succulent Karoo warrants global recognition for its natural heritage. What 

the table also shows is of the various centres of the Succulent Karoo the Gariep 

Centre attributes almost half of the endemic succulent species with an astounding 

80% endemism rate. This more than doubles almost every other Region or Centre 

in Southern Africa, a part of the world renowned for succulent plants. With the 

Conservancy being a Core of the Gariep Centre, this comparison emphasizes the 

justification as having outstanding universal value to the world botanical estate. 

Other deserts inscribed in the World Heritage Site List, such as Oman’s Arabian 

Oryx Sanctuary or the Mauritania’s Banc d’Arguin National Park, do not, despite 

other worthy attributes, demonstrate universal biological or ecological importance 

as dramatically or as quantitatively as the Richtersveld. In regards to diversity, 

species densities and rates of endemism reaching upwards of 40%, the 

Richtersveld, stands tallest of all the world’s deserts. If natural aspects of the 

environments of the two above sites prove them justifiable for World Heritage 

inclusion, then the status of being one of only two deserts in the world to be a 

Biodiversity Hotspot should provide a very sound case for inclusion of the 

Richtersveld. Similarly, if the Pirin National Park of Bulgaria is regarded as 

universally outstanding for its endemic and rare species – which is impressive in its 

own right - it can reasonably be argued that the greater biologically diversity and 

uniqueness of the Richtersveld can be viewed as extraordinary. 

A final comparison can be made between the Richtersveld and the Valle de Mai 

Nature Reserve of the Seychelles. The island’s coco de mer is described as a 

universally significant and valuable species and rightly so. It is immediately evident 

the similarities between the high status of the coco de mer and the scientifically and 

culturally valuable “halfmens” (Pachypodium namaquanum) and Aloe pillansii, of 

which most of the world’s population exist inside the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy boundaries. All three species have enormously restricted habitats and 

all are also very large and charismatic species bearing powerful presences and 

cultural significance. They are flagship species for their respective environments,


severely threatened, and in the case of the Aloe pillansii, of great value to science, 

especially in regards to the impact of climate change on the global environment. 

3.d. Integrity and Authenticity 

Infrastructure and development are minimal in the Conservancy with only two small 

towns, Kuboes and Eksteenfontein, existing on the Southern and Western 

boundaries. Population of the two towns are very low and are unlikely to grow due 

to low carrying capacity of the land, lack of substantial water and in light of the 

general trend in the region of people moving towards larger urban centres and 

away from small villages such as these which offer few jobs and limited opportunity 

beyond minor livestock farming. Inside the Conservancy land, are only seasonal 

livestock posts and |haru oms of pastoralists. There are no paved roads in the area 

and all tourism development has fallen directly within the very strict regulations set 

forth by the Conservancy Management Committee, as well as municipal, provincial 

and national laws, such as the Environmental Conservation Act, National Heritage 

Resources Act and National Environmental Management Act, amongst others. All 

future developments, such as plans for a small eco-lodge, must carry out 

comprehensive and transparent Environmental Impact Assessments and Social 

Impact Assessments with exhaustive public participation. The integrity of the 

environment is such that an adjacent provincial reserve, the Nababiep (Helskloof) 

Reserve is soon to be taken under the Conservancy’s management and 

boundaries. 

In regards to Section IIE of the Operational Guidelines, the core area indeed is of 

sufficient size at 160,000 Hectares to encompass the most critical environments 

and the necessary diversity of environments to adequately protect the valuable flora 

of the Gariep Centre of Plant Endemism and Succulent Karoo Biodiversity Hotspot. 

The Conservancy boundaries were designed and approved according to such 

ecological parameters. The natural elements found within the boundaries are 

comprehensive with the entire Ploeberg, Stinkfontein, Blackface mountain ranges, 

numerous quartz fields, the Helskloof Canyon and a large untouched section of the 

Orange River all located within its boundaries. The Conservancy also includes all of 

the sub-biomes of the Succulent Karoo Biodiversity Hotspot, with the exception of


the coastal vegetation, which in the future can be included in the forthcoming 

creation of the Richtersveld Coastal Reserve, which was identified and written into 

the 2005 Land Use Plan of the Coastal Areas by the Sida !hub Community Property 

Association (CPA). 

Additionally, the Conservancy holds the largest known population of Aloe pillansii. 

In regards to the Operational Guidelines’ stipulation of freedom of adverse effects of 

development or neglect, there are no existing developments in the 160,000 ha 

Conservancy other than a small guesthouse and the seasonal livestock posts of the 

Nama and Bosluis Baster people. In regards to risk of neglect, the Conservancy 

lands have been cared for through sustainable pastoralism for two thousand years 

by the Nama and Bosluis Baster people of the Richtersveld. It was known long ago 

by them that to destroy or damage the environment would be to destroy their own 

livelihoods. 

The Nara Document on Authenticity was used in this analysis of the integrity and 

authenticity of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy as a justifiable cultural 

World Heritage Site. Historically it has been the traditional home of the Nama 

people extending back to their earliest arrival out of what is now Botswana, as 

hunter gathers. Its remoteness and the lack of appeal, water and arable land 

prevented it from being overtaken by larger and stronger communities of Bantu 

Africans and later white settlers. During the Apartheid era, the land that is now the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy was declared a non-white area and a socalled 

“coloured reserve”. This not only prevented white people from moving in, but 

also prevented Nama and Bosluis Baster people from moving out and dispersing 

into other areas of the country. This policy was discriminate and had severe 

economic and social impacts on many of the people of the Richtersveld region, but 

also resulted in the Conservancy area being for all practical purposes free of white 

settlers. In this regard, the Conservancy lands continued to exist in much of the 

same way that it had for several generations. 

The seasonal patterns of the Nama pastoralists have remained largely the same in 

the Conservancy area and no permanent settlements have been erected in the 

Conservancy area. The dynamic nature of Nama transhumance has been


preserved and is evident in the scattered seasonal livestock posts throughout the 

site. Additionally, the traditional rushmat domed hut, called the |haru oms is an 

authentic design developed exclusively by the Nama people, although in some 

cases copied by other tribes in Namibia and South Africa due to its practical design. 

Traditional |haru oms are today rare, and can only be found in the remote areas. 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy and the town of Kuboes along its border 

represent one of the last places on earth in which Nama people reside in |haru oms. 

What was formerly a widespread form of abode, is now an endangered structure 

confined to the farthest reaches of the mountains. The design of the |haru oms has 

been studied and its status assessed by the Northern Cape Province’s Department 

of Sport, Arts and Culture in 2001, the document for which is included in Appendix 

C. 

The Richtersveld exists in a region which has been affected both culturally and 

naturally by several social, biophysical and economic factors. Of the greatest 

factors has been large scale open cast diamond mining which has defaced a 

significant part of the region. The cultural impacts too have been great creating over 

several decades a dependence on mining jobs with little alternatives for jobs or 

improvements to lives. Diamond mining, with historically little environmental 

regulation or regard for local communities, has left its scar on much of the 

northwest coast of South Africa. However, the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy has never been mined for diamonds. It is also important to point out 

that it will never be mined. Not only is mining forbidden in Conservancy regulations 

and in contrast to all local and regional land use policies such as all versions of 

Integrated Development Plans, but the Conservancy also lies outside of the 

diamond deposit areas of the region. Mining of diamonds in the region is 

concentrated in areas where ancient oxbows of the Orange River existed. No such 

areas exist in the Conservancy – instead its stretches of the Orange River are 

comprised of deep canyons. Additionally, the Conservancy lands have been studied 

and assessed in the past for diamonds and it was determined that no deposits exist 

in the Conservancy area. 

In short, geophysically, the Conservancy is not diamond country. As a result, the 

damage associated with mines in other parts of the region are absent from the


Conservancy and never made their mark there. Additionally and crucially, the large 

Communal Grazing Area which surrounds the Conservancy is also unmined and 

provides a necessary buffer zone around the Conservancy, and on its northern 

boundary lies the vast expanse of the mountainous and largely impenetrable 

regions of the Richtersveld National Park, serving as a natural physical buffer to the 

Conservancy. All of these factors provide evidence that mining cannot occur in the 

Conservancy and that the Conservancy is well ‘insulated’ from mining activities 

which occur elsewhere and a substantial distance from the Conservancy.


4. State of Conservation and Factors Affecting the Property 

4.a. Present State of Conservation 

The Succulent Karoo is poorly protected in South Africa in formally gazetted parks 

and reserves with only 2.5% included in national parks. It is also home to high 

numbers of threatened species, many of which are under threat because of their 

limited and confined microhabitats. 

However, where sustainable grazing is practiced, the Succulent Karoo can be 

effectively conserved, as opposed to places where there is irreversible damage by 

other land uses such as human settlement, mining, unsustainable livestock farming 

and agriculture which pose the largest threats to the Succulent Karoo. In the 

Conservancy, one finds an in tact and floristically well representative area with no 

agriculture, mining and with sustainable grazing practices. Details on the 

Conservancy’s conservation status and future plans are outlined in Section 5. 

Details of the Succulent Karoo Biodiversity Hotspot 

Original extent of the Succulent Karoo 

Biodiversity Hotspot 

102,691 sq. km 

Vegetation Remaining in the Succulent 

Karoo Biodiversity Hotspot 

29,780 sq. km. 

Area Protected 2,567 sq. km. 

Total known plant species 6,356 

Endemic Plant Species 2,439 

Human population density 4 per sq. km. 

4.b. Factors Affecting the Property 

4.b (i) Development Pressures 

There is very little development in the Core Area with most people residing in the 

two towns along its boundary: Kuboes and Eksteenfontein. These two towns have 

limits preventing them from growth, such as availability of water, employment 

opportunities and limited options for land use. Development in the region is mainly 

occurring in the larger urban centres, such as Port Nolloth, but in the interior of the


Richtersveld, including the Core Area and buffer zones, population is sparse and 

development limited by environmental and economic parameters. 

One sector of growth and development which is facing the Conservancy is a 

welcome one: tourism. The only infrastructural development underway in the 

Conservancy is for the upgrading of eight campsites, upgrading of the existing 

guesthouse and the development of a small overnight wilderness hut. Despite the 

small size of these developments, environmental impact assessments were carried 

out on request of the Management Committee. Additionally, social and heritage 

impacts assessments were part of the process to ensure that any tourism 

development, no matter how small, does not infringe on the livelihoods of local 

pastoralists and is kept a suitable distance from seasonal livestock posts. To further 

ensure that tourism development is managed appropriately, a Tourism Plan and a 

Zoning Plan are being developed for the Conservancy. These plans will outline 

specifically the areas in which tourism can operate and under what conditions. 

Tourism pressure is specified in more detail in Section 4.b (iv) (Visitor/Tourism 

Pressures). 

In all arid areas, desertification and overgrazing are significant issues. Elsewhere in 

Northern Cape Province and across the border in Namibia, there are visible signs of 

the environmental impacts of unsustainable use of the grazing resource and unwise 

land use practices leading to environmental deterioration. The Conservancy, as a 

result of its topography and traditional natural resource management remains in 

good condition. Pastoral goat and sheep herders also rotate herds between grazing 

areas to prevent overutilization of any particular area. 

Theft and illegal harvesting of succulent plants poses a problem throughout the 

entire Succulent Karoo and Fynbos biomes. Theft of reptiles, such as tortoises, also 

occurs. In such vast and sparsely populated areas as one finds in the region, 

control is often difficult. There have been few reports of plant harvesting in the 

Conservancy, and the Management Committee is initiating a programme to engage 

the traditional goat and sheep herders who reside throughout the Conservancy to 

report any incidents and to assist in preventing plant and animal theft. Past 

environmental awareness campaigns in the Conservancy, specifically those


focused on youth, such as the annual Youth Summit in the Conservancy, have also 

contributed to awareness about the importance of conserving and retaining the 

environmental and cultural heritage objects, including plant an animal species. 

Additional awareness campaigns are planned for 2006 and 2007. 

As described in Section 3.d. (Integrity and Authenticity), mining development does 

not pose a threat to the site. In addition to the zoning restrictions which are currently 

written into the municipality’s Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and the 

Management Plan of the Conservancy and forthcoming legal restrictions in the 

declaration of the Heritage Area, there are significant environmental restrictions 

which prevent diamond mining from occurring in the Conservancy, as well as its 

Buffer Zones, as specified in more detail in Section 3.d (Integrity and Authenticity). 

4.b (ii) Environmental Pressures 

Seasonal drought is an occurrence in the Conservancy and one which is inherently 

part of the region’s climate which has led to the diversity of plants which one finds in 

the Conservancy. These seasonal droughts are coped with by local herders by the 

movement of herds throughout the Conservancy area. The Conservancy also 

encompasses two rainfall zones, summer and winter, which allows drought-hit 

areas to recover and remain without livestock for several months off the year. The 

region despite bouts of dry weather receives fairly reliable rainfall, especially for the 

desert area. 

Studies of the impacts of climate change on the Richtersveld flora are being carried 

out. Particularly, the Aloe dichotoma and Aloe pillansii are considered under threat 

from global warming. Several areas where A. dichotoma were formerly abundant 

are now devoid of young plants, leading scientists to believe that the rise in 

temperature and the resultant effect on changes in rainfall patterns are preventing 

young plants from surviving. This phenomenon is likely to be happening also to A. 

pillansii, a significantly rarer aloe of which almost the entire population occurs in the 

Conservancy. Further study is required on A. pillansii and Pachypodium 

namaquanum (halfmens), both rare and threatened species.


The Conservancy is bordered on the northeast by a large section of the Orange 

River, and perhaps the most undisturbed stretch of the river. The Orange River is 

the largest river in South Africa and Along its 2300 kilometre length, it passes 

through large farming regions where it is tapped for agriculture and human 

settlement and polluted by fertilizer and waste. The result has been continually 

lower river water levels, impacts on fish species and the inability of the river to flood 

and flush along its course. The Orange is undisturbed along its entire course along 

the Conservancy, which serves to protect one of the last remaining wilderness 

stretches of the river. However, cumulative impacts from upstream activities affect 

the overall health of the river. 

Grazing of livestock has been carried out in the Richtersveld for two thousand 

years, leaving the land largely in tact. Numbers of stock are generally low, as a 

result of low carrying capacity of the land. However, certain areas require strict 

monitoring to ensure that grazing does not impact heavily on the flora. Some areas 

in the broader Richtersveld have substantial damage from erosion and overgrazing. 

The Conservancy through its Management Plan and the in-process GEF-funded 

Grazing Plan for the Conservancy and communal grazing areas will largely ensure 

that grazing is practiced sustainably. 

4.b (iii) Natural Disasters and Risk Preparedness 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy falls under the Disaster Management 

Plan (DMP) of the Richtersveld Municipality. The Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000 

and the Disaster Management Act 57 of 2002 places an obligation upon each 

municipality to prepare a Disaster Management Plan as part of their Integrated 

Development Plans (IDPs). The Richtersveld Municipality published their DMP in 

2004 with jurisdiction over the Conservancy area. 

The DMP of the Richtersveld Municipality identifies the following as the greatest 

risks for the entire municipality which includes the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy: 

• Desertification 

• Drought


• Domestic fires 

• Flooding 

Road accidents and erratic electricity and phone services to the remote parts of the 

municipality were also identified as areas where intervention is required. Surveys 

were carried out in Eksteenfontein and Kuboes with regards to the immediate 

needs relating to Disaster Mitigation and Risk Preparedness. 

Natural disasters which face the Richtersveld Community Conservancy are not of a 

great enough scale to pose a significant threat to the property. Occasional brush 

fires are controllable due to the terrain, lack of dry undergrowth and succulent 

nature of the plant species. Flooding of dirt roads occurs at times rendering the 

more remote roads as inaccessible, but the Department of Environmental Affairs 

and Tourism (DEA&T) and the municipality have already begun repairing roads in 

the two towns as well as access roads to the Conservancy. It is noted that crime is 

not identified as a priority area, as the Richtersveld has the lowest crime rates in the 

entire country. The DMP also outlines a Disaster Response Plan which is being 

compiled to set forth contingency planning for the prioritized possible disasters. 

In light of the envisioned emergency facilities needed for a World Heritage Site and 

in general being demanded by the residents of Eksteenfontein and Kuboes, 

telephone services and electricity supplies are being upgraded. A new tar road is 

being constructed linking Kuboes with Alexander Bay (with hospital facilities) and 

Oranjemund, Namibia (with airport facilities) and cell phone coverage is ever 

expanding in the region, currently available in Kuboes, but not yet in 

Eksteenfontein. 

4.b. (iv) Visitor/Tourism Pressures 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is located in the most sparsely 

populated region of South Africa. While visitor numbers are increasing, the 

Conservancy and surrounding areas remain remote and subsequently do not face 

the same visitor pressures as do other protected areas of the country, such as 

Cape Peninsula National Park and Kruger National Park. The main pressures


facing the Conservancy are from off-road driving, illegal harvesting of plants and 

camping by tourists in undemarcated sites. These are pressures which have faced 

the area since many years prior to the establishment of the formal protected area. 

The creation of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy set forth a number of 

measures to control visitors and potential degradation of the area. 

The Conservancy has no current challenges in ensuring that the carrying capacity 

of tourism is not exceeded. Although it is unforeseeable that in such a remote 

location tourism numbers would reach levels which were unmanageable by the 

Conservancy Management, structures - such as zoning guidelines, campsite 

development and demarcation, signage, regulations, enforcement mechanisms, 

trained and certified guides and public awareness campaigns – have been put in 

place already to prepare the Conservancy for increased visitor numbers. 

Zoning 

The Conservancy has been zoned into three zones: tourism areas, town areas and 

wilderness areas. Tourism is encouraged in the towns and specific tourism zones 

which are shown on tourism maps available in the Tourism Information Centre. The 

tourism areas are located in the eastern and southwestern parts of the 

Conservancy where there are three guesthouses, as well as most of the campsites. 

The areas of Rooiberg, Eksteenfontein, Helskloof and Tierhoek receive almost all of 

the current tourism pressure. 

Tourism is permitted in the wilderness areas as well at specific campsites and on 

specific roads, although usage is limited. The roughness of the land and roads in 

the wilderness areas largely prevents people from straying from the demarcated 

roads and campsites. It also presents a natural barrier against higher volume 

tourism, as only the most determined people will find their way into the mountains 

and valleys of the interior. Many of the roads are extremely rough and for use by 

4x4 drivers only. These areas are monitored by the local stockfarmers who reside in 

the areas, as well as the Conservancy Management patrols. This environmental 

restriction ensures that the bulk of tourism remains in the Tourism Zones where it is 

closely monitored.


Although tourism is easily managed at present, regulations and plans for the future 

have been put in place in anticipation of increasing visitor numbers. Zoning and 

demarcating campsites and roads help route tourists along preferred routes in the 

area and guide them towards facilities. In addition, a project funded by the 

Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) is underway to build 

ecologically sound toilet facilities in the more popular campsites. This will be the 

only infrastructure planned for the campsites, to provide the necessary facilities to 

ensure clean campsites without detracting from the wilderness character of the 

sites through erection of unsightly and uncharacteristic infrastructure. Signage in 

each campsite also ensures that fires are kept in one location at the site and that 

the site does not spread and increase its footprint. A formal Zoning Plan and 

Tourism Plan are being developed in 2006. 

Conservancy Regulations 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy has implemented the following 

regulations: 

• Visitors must use only existing tracks designated for visitor use. 

• Visitors must remove all rubbish and all items which were brought in the 

protected area. 

• It is against Conservancy regulations to remove or damage any plants, 

animals and cultural heritage items. 

• Visitors must use only the designated camping areas as demarcated at the 

Tourism Information Centre. 

• Visitors are required to pay all entrance and camping fees. 

• It is against Conservancy regulations to collect firewood in the Conservancy. 

These regulations are posted on signage throughout the Conservancy, at the 

Tourism Information Centres (TIC) where visitors must register upon entry, on 

entrance fee receipts and on maps for the area available for sale at the TICs.


A special addition to the Management Plan that will particularly address the 

safeguarding of cultural assets is currently underway and is expected to be 

completed in early 2006. 

Enforcement 

The regulations are enforced by the Conservancy Manager who actively patrols the 

Conservancy area. In addition, the Conservancy is fortunate in that its interior is 

populated by local herdsmen who act as a patrol force themselves. Since all adult 

community members are legitimate owners of the Conservancy, including all seminomadic 

herders, an initiative is underway by the Management Committee to 

further engage these seasonal livestock grazers as a patrolling force 

knowledgeable of the Conservancy regulations and with the due authority to 

enforce the regulations, such those against plant collection and off-road driving. 

This method serves two purposes: to increase the involvement of all the 

stakeholders including those living in remote parts of the Conservancy and to utilize 

this human resource already stationed in the remote parts of the Conservancy as 

additional custodians of the property. 

Signage 

The property, formerly a vast and open area without publicly demarcated 

boundaries, has been properly signed. Signage has been erected to specify the 

following to visitors: 

• Borders and entrances of the property. 

• Locations of demarcated campsites. 

• Directions from roads to demarcated campsites (to prevent off-road driving). 

• No-entry signs for roads not permitted for use by visitors. 

• Notice signs for preservation of petroglyphs. 

• Directions to the Tourism Information Centre (TIC) for registration and 

payment of fees.


The above signage has been erected in only necessary locations in order to avoid 

disrupting the landscape with too much infrastructure. Additionally, signage was 

designed with neutral earthtones to complement the landscape and fit in with the 

area’s status as a protected area. 

Public Awareness 

The initiative to incorporate the remote stockfarmers as custodians and patrolling 

officers is one aspect of public awareness underway in the Conservancy. There 

have been numerous other programmes for community clean-ups and community 

engagement in conservation and preservation activities. Members of the towns of 

Kuboes and Eksteenfontein, the two towns located on the edges of the 

Conservancy, have made great strides in awareness of biodiversity conservation 

and the value of the Richtersveld’s culture. Such programmes in the past have 

included the very successful annual Richtersveld Youth Summits and youth field 

trips into the Conservancy for lessons on the area’s valuable succulents and 

cultural heritage. It is the broader community, as well as designated officers, who 

can help prevent visitors from collecting succulents, artefacts or from driving off 

road or disposing of rubbish inappropriately. 

Trained guides 

There are several trained and certified guides in Eksteenfontein and Kuboes who 

can lead cultural and natural tours in the towns and the Conservancy. They work by 

the code of ethics outlined by the Field Guides Association of Southern Africa, as 

well as by the regulations of the Conservancy. These guides can ensure that 

visitors while travelling in the Conservancy are acting in accordance with the law 

and Conservancy regulations. They can also educate visitors about the natural and 

cultural heritage of the area and the need for its protection. 

4.b. (v) Number of Inhabitants within the property and buffer zone. 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy falls within the Richtersveld Municipality 

which is very sparsely populated with 2001 census population numbers of 10,124.


Significantly, as a result of the downscaling of mines in the region the population 

has fallen from 11,764 in 1996. 

Of the Municipality’s population, the great majority live in the towns of Alexander 

Bay and Port Nolloth, both located on the coast. Most other residents live in the 

other small towns: Kuboes, Sandrift, Sendelingsdrift, Lekkersing and 


The Conservancy lands, however, are very sparsely populated with no permanent 

residence. The people who do live in the protected area are semi-nomadic goat and 

sheep herders, most of whom exhibit a transhumance lifestyle. Because of the 

nature of nomadism, it is difficult to know exactly the number of people residing in 

the Conservancy; however a 2005 estimate concluded that up to 300 herders 

reside inside the Conservancy, some only at certain times of the year and with an 

overall residence depending largely on the rains. Past estimates have been made 

by mapping activities and through the development of the Conservancy 

Infrastructure Plan, but studies are planned to determine the number and 

movements of seasonal livestock posts. 

The Richtersveld National Park has few semi-nomadic sheep and goat herders, the 

Helskloof Provincial Nature Reserve has no inhabitants and the Communal Grazing 

Area consists of scattered groups of sheep and goat herders with little permanent 

settlement outside of the small towns.


5 Protection and Management 

Traditional Management 

Sustainable management of the core area and envisioned World Heritage Site has 

been on-going for the past two thousand years. Since the beginning of pastoral 

activities in the area - primarily nomadic and semi-nomadic sheep and goat herding 

– the Nama people have been caring for and managing the land. Traditional 

management of the grazing and water resources ensured that their livelihood, 

which was inextricably linked to the health of the land, could survive. As with other 

groups of pastoral people who are so directly dependant on sustaining natural 

resources, the Nama utilized the land wisely, rotating grazing pastures between 

seasons, which prevented overutilization of one particular area and which allowed 

summer grazing areas to rest during the winter months and vice versa. The 

piospheres, or sacrifice zones, which are often found in arid areas surrounding 

water points are noticeably absent from the Conservancy. It is no coincidence that 

after two thousand years of pastoral activity and habitation, the Conservancy area 

is being heralded by international conservation organisations as an ecologically 

intact and highly valuable biodiversity area. Traditional management of the natural 

resources by the Nama people has ensured this. 

Community Conservancy Management 

In recent years, however, the process of the developing a community-owned and - 

managed protected area sought to build on the success of traditional management 

and to organise the Richtersveld people in such a way as to preserve the 

indigenous knowledge of wise-use while arming the people with a management 

structure which could ensure from a legal and institutional perspective the future of 

the area as an ecologically sound and culturally vibrant wilderness area forever 

preserving one of the last and largest reserves of Succulent Karoo flora. The 

process of creating a community conservancy supported strongly by local people 

and local government and the development and adoption of the Conservancy 

Management Plan by the broader community and the landowner (CPA) has been 

successful. The Conservancy has been written into the Integrated Development


Plan (IDP) of the Richtersveld Municipality and been accepted by the CPA as a fully 

endorsed Protected Area. 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is managed by a Management 

Committee whose role is to ensure that the management of the Conservancy is 

carried out in accordance to the Management Plan (please refer to section 5e). The 

Committee meets four times a year and includes representatives from the following 

organisations and associations: 

Members of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy Management 

Committee 

NAME ORGANISATION 

Gert Links Conservancy Manager 

Joan Cloete Conservancy Administrative Officer 

Polly Smith Eksteenfontein community 

Bettie Farmer Eksteenfontein community 

Kleinbooi Mpambani Sanddrift community 

Anna Slander Sanddrift community 

Andries Joseph Kuboes community 

Sylvia Hans Kuboes community 

Ivan Nero Lekkersing community 

Jacob Diergaardt Lekkersing community 

Izak Cloete Richtersveld Small Miners Association 

Abuys De Wet Richtersveld Tourism Association 

Klaas Van Zyl Department, Tourism, Environment & 

Conservation 

Joseph Domrogh RGBK 

Andy Davies South African National Parks 

Ivan Groenewald District Municipality 

Jacob Fredericks Richtersveld Sida !hub Community 

Property Association (CPA) 

Dirkie Uys Richtersveld Municipality 

Sintie Cloete Lekkersing community 

Willem De Wet Richtersveld Traditional Nama Council 

Joshua De Wet Richtersveld CPA 

The day-to-day management of the Conservancy is carried out by the Operational 

Management Committee, which includes the Conservancy Manager, the 

Administrative Officer and the Coordinator of the Richtersveld CBNRM Programme. 

The Manager’s tasks include carrying out patrols of the area, directing any 

development activity, monitoring land use by pastoralists, liasing with stakeholders 

(CPA, government, South African National Parks (SANParks) authorities and


neighbouring properties). The Administrative Officer’s tasks include financial 

reporting, bookkeeping, planning management committee meetings and keeping of 

Conservancy records. The Operational Management Committee hold weekly 

operational meetings to manage tasks associated with conservation and 

development projects active in the Conservancy (such as the infrastructure 

development project by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and 

the UNDP project for development of a research facility), tourism, livestock herding, 

and general protective issues related to the site, as well as the surrounding areas. 

Legal Protection: Establishment of a Heritage Area (Section 31 of the National 

Heritage Resource Act (1999) 

The CPA and Conservancy Management, with support of local, provincial and 

national government, are currently in the process of taking protective status a step 

further to declare the Conservancy as a Heritage Area which will give the 

Conservancy legal protective status. The application for becoming a Heritage Area 

under Section 31 of the National Heritage Resource Act (NHRA) is being lodged by 

the CPA as a landowner in conjunction with the Northern Cape Provincial 

Department of Sport, Arts & Culture and the Richtersveld Municipality. 

The process of moving towards formal protection of the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy has been a long and well considered one with a number of possible 

options in terms of applicable legislation being considered. Given the history of the 

Richtersveld and that the people who live there have after several hundred years of 

hardship and deprivation only very recently obtained formal title to the area, 

systems of protection that involve considerable intervention and management on 

the part of outside authority were not acceptable to the community which quite 

correctly believes that its traditions and traditional management systems are what 

have up to the present time protected the area and determined that its universal 

values have remained intact. 

Given that from a cultural perspective what is proposed for nomination is a cultural 

landscape, the maintenance of which depends upon perpetuation of practices and 

traditions that are in large part intangible, though very dependant on the sound


management of the land for their perpetuation, it was felt by both heritage and 

environmental specialists involved with the community that the best option would be 

one that as far as possible perpetuated traditional protections and allowed the 

community as large a role in management of the site as the legal system would 

permit. It was, however, clear that in order to obtain both national and international 

protection of the site some form of firm and enforceable legal protection was 

required. 

In order to ensure that a system of regulation was acceptable to the community, an 

undertaking was given to it by provincial authorities that prior to the formal 

implementation of any regulatory and management framework the system would be 

applied, tested and refined and not gazetted until such time as the community was 

satisfied that it met its needs, did not significantly erode its land rights and would 

serve adequately as a means of protecting the resources it values. 

Conversely the aforementioned has proven as important to heritage and 

environmental professionals involved with the site in that it has shown that ‘codified’ 

traditional protections and a formalised system of management in which the 

community plays the essential role do work for the site and will ensure its future 

conservation. 

In considering which of the many options for formal, legal recognition of the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy was best suited to its situation, many 

possibilities have been considered and it has been resolved to protect the area 

under the terms of the NHRA and as a Heritage Area. Interaction with the 

community during a trial period for the management plan and management system 

as implemented over the past several years has determined that this system is the 

one most suitable for the site and needs of the community. 

Section 31 of the NHRA provides for the creation of Heritage Areas and provides 

options for this to be accomplished by either the municipality or Provincial Heritage 

Resources Authority. In this case it is considered by both the Province, Municipality 

and community that the heritage area is best created by Ngao Boshwa Kapa


Bokoni and the process of implementation of the relevant provisions Section 31 of 

the act is currently underway and envisaged for gazetting by mid-2006. 

Broadly speaking, the Heritage Areas provisions of the NHRA are a dynamic way of 

providing for protection of an area in that rather than applying a predetermined set 

of provisions prescribed by legislation, a regulation that meets the specific needs of 

the site in question must be written and gazetted. The regulation is equivalent to a 

management plan for the site in that it not only identifies what has to be protected, 

but how this should take place. Usually it also creates a management authority that 

allows all the necessary players in the given context to be involved in the decision 

making processes around the site. The provision is specifically designed for 

application to sites where there is a close inter-connection of cultural and natural 

values and resources of the site. (Clause 1 of Section 31 of the NHRA states that 

the purpose of a Heritage Area is “to protect any area of environmental or cultural 

interest”.) 

The envisaged regulation will provide for both the core area of the site and its buffer 

zone and consists of the conversion of the current management plan into 

regulations, with greater provision for cultural resources, and the recognition of the 

current Management Committee. 

It is envisaged that the Management Committee formally created by the regulation 

establishing the Heritage Area will, once the site is inscribed on the World Heritage 

List, be recognised as a Management Authority in terms of South African World 

Heritage Act. 

In summary, the establishment as a Heritage Area under NHRA serves three 

primary roles. First it places the entire area and its biological and cultural assets 

under full legal protection. Second, it ensures that the local community can continue 

to own and manage the site and ensure participation and consultation of local 

people such as the semi-nomadic pastoralists. Third, it ensures a ‘checks and 

balances’ system by which any development which affects the area must gain 

consent of both the local owners and the local government. Areas which can be 

declared Heritage Areas include those which are part of the “National Estate”,


which includes places or objects with cultural significance or other special value 

because of its possession of uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of South 

Africa's natural or cultural heritage and/or its potential to yield information that will 

contribute to an understanding of South Africa's natural or cultural heritage and/or 

its importance in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of 

South Africa's natural or cultural places or objects. Section 3 of NHRA also 

describes the National Estate to include specific cultural and natural artifacts. For a 

list of these, please refer to Description of the NHRA in Section 5.b and 5.c. 

Protection and Management of Buffer Zones 

The Buffer Zone to the North (Richtersveld National Park) is protected by the 

Protected Areas Act under one of the highest provision of protective status 

available in South Africa. South African National Parks (SANParks) has an 

excellent track record in biodiversity conservation and management and currently 

manages World Heritage Site areas, such as Cape Peninsula National Park. 

The Buffer Zone to the East (Helskloof Provincial Nature Reserve) is protected 

under the Protected Areas Act as a provincial nature reserve, enjoying a high level 

of protection which prohibits human habitation, livestock or development. 

The Buffer Zone to the South (Communal Grazing Area) is similar to the 

Conservancy in being sparsely populated wilderness areas with scattered seminomadic 

sheep and goat herders. The area is zoned by the CPA and local 

government as a communal grazing area and development is restricted by the 

CPA. Additional protective status is being considered to protect certain sites in the 

area, and a five year GEF grant is beginning for sustainable land use in the area.


5.a. Ownership 

Prior to democratisation of South 

Africa in 1994, the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy was 

classified as a “coloured reserve” 

of which there were 27 in the 

Western Cape and Northern Cape 

Province. In the case of the 

Richtersveld, the largest of the 

“coloured reserves”, the area is 

sparsely populated mostly by 

people of Nama origin, as well as 

the so-called Bosluis Baster 

people 8 The CPA 

In 2001, the Richtersveld Community decided to 

establish a legal entity known as the Richtersveld 

Sida !hub Community Property Association (CPA) 

with the objective of representing the residents of 

the four Richtersveld villages (Kuboes, Lekkersing, 

Sandrift and Eksteenfontein) and outlying areas in 

their land claim, and managing the land restored to 

the Richtersveld community under the land claims 

process on behalf of its members, namely every 

person 18 years and older from the community. 

After acceptance of the CPA’s constitution on the 

14th of February 2001, a CPA Committee was 

established consisting of representatives elected at 

separate village elections as well as appointees of 

the Richtersveld Municipal Council. The CPA 

constitution and the Communal Property 

Association Act of 1996 govern the CPA 

and Xhosa people that 

Committee’s decision-making powers. The 

constitution and the Act require community 

previously worked on the state- participation. Aims of the CPA include 

owned Alexkor Ltd diamond mine. 

improvement of the infrastructure, development of 

agriculture, tourism, and economic opportunities to 

support job creation, and capacity building of 

committee members so that they can make the right 

In the post-1994 government an 

act was passed known as the 

decisions on behalf of the community. 

Transformation of Certain Rural Areas Act (Act 94 of 1998) that makes provision for 

the ownership of such reserves to be determined through a particular process 

known as the Transformation Process. During the Transformation Process an 

extensive public awareness process was followed by a referendum that allows 

residents to vote on ownership options for the land. The main choices given to the 

8 While the authors deplore the usage of terms with racial connotations as a point of reference when 

referring to people this may sometimes be necessary either because people refer to themselves in that 

way, or because it may reflect a salient point that is made for a particular purpose. The term “Baster” is 

widely used in Namibia and generally so by the Rehoboth “Basters” who often refer to themselves as 

such with a great measure of pride in their unique origins and identity. In the Richtersveld the term 

“Baster” in the past was often used in a derogatory way during the Apartheid era when race formed 

the basis of discrimination by the government. This however appears to be changing as the desire to 

discover and analyze heritage increases in the melting pot that is the Richtersveld. 

While the Nama belong to a distinct and ancient grouping of people they were simply clumped 

together with the so-called “coloureds” by an ignorant and insensitive South African government when 

the nation was divided along ethnic and colour lines as a means for further oppression and to bestow 

special privileges upon the “whites”. The history of the “Bosluis Basters” is captured in a recent book 

titled BB’s van die Boesmanland by Barry Eksteen (May 2005).


community were to have the communal lands placed under the ownership of the 

local municipality or under a Community Property Association. In the case of the 

Richtersveld communal land the community voted overwhelmingly to retain 

ownership of their land that would be formalised by way of a Community Property 

Association structure and in 2001 the Sida !Hub Community Property Association 

(referred to as the “CPA”) was created constituting every adult member of the four 

Richtersveld towns of Eksteenfontein, Kuboes, Lekkersing and Sandrift (adult 

members of the community are those over the age of 18 who have lived in any of 

the towns for five years or more). Thus the ownership of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy resides with the entire community, and formal title holding 

is expecting to be transferred to the CPA from the Minister of the Department of 

Land Affairs in the near future. 

The CPA is currently represented by a committee of elected members of the 

community. Decisions of land use are taken by the CPA and close relations are 

maintained with local government (the Richtersveld Municipality), as well as with 

District and Provincial governments. People residing in and around the 

Conservancy area, primarily the Nama and Bosluis Baster pastoralists are 

members of the CPA and thus landowners themselves. The Conservancy is 

comprised of one contiguous protected area of approximately 160,000 hectares. 

Additionally, the Nababiep (helskloof) Provincial Nature Reserve borders on the 

Conservancy’s eastern boundary and is to be transferred from the Northern Cape 

Province’s Department of Tourism, Environment and Conservation (DTEC) to the 

CPA for inclusion in the Conservancy. This is a testament to the success of the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy. 

Buffer zones surrounding the Conservancy are comprised mainly of two types of 

ownership. The Richtersveld National Park on the northern boundary is also part of 

the Richtersveld communal area and hence is owned by the Richtersveld Sida !hub 

CPA, and is co-managed by the community and the South African National Parks 

(SANParks) through the Richtersveld Gemeenskaplike Bestuurskomitee, known as 

the RGBK and roughly translated as the Richtersveld Communal Management 

Committee. The Communal Grazing Area bordering the Conservancy to the West,


South and East is under CPA ownership. The area to the northeast consists of the 

Orange River and the political border with Namibia. 

Summary of Land Ownership 

Area Ownership 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy Sida !hub Community Property Association 

(CPA) 

Helskloof Provincial Nature Reserve Northern Cape Province (soon to be 

transferred to CPA) 

Buffer Zone – North (Richtersveld National Sida !hub Community Property Association 

Park) 

(CPA) 

Buffer Zones – East, South, West Sida !Hub Community Property Association 

(CPA) 

There exists good harmony between the Richtersveld Municipality, which is the 

administrative authority for the municipal area and the landowner which is the CPA. 

Their relationship is governed by a Memorandum of Understanding. 

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Richtersveld Municipality and 

the Richtersveld Sida !Hub Community Property Association (CPA) 

The Richtersveld CPA and the Local Government signed an MoU, on 11 June 

2004, to promote good cooperation between the parties in terms of planning and 

development of the Richtersveld area’s resources. This was designed to ensure 

progress and growth in the region, which is the main principle of the MoU 

document. Both parties accepted the following guidelines: 

• Investigation and implementation of cooperation opportunities 

• Explanation of the different roles of each party in relation to the community 

• Closure of agreements which would benefit the community 

• Addressing of differences of opinion and solutions which would be in the 

best interest of the community 

• Regular official meetings between the parties


• Exchange of information about land use and management of possible 

integrated developments and conservation frameworks 

• Avoidance of unnecessary interference in each other’s mandates 

• Establishment of future guidelines for management 

Both community and local government are fully supportive of the World Heritage 

Site nomination which is mentioned in various versions of the IDP as well as Annual 

Reports of the CPA. 

5.b and 5.c Protective Designation and Means of Implementing Protective 

Measures 

The Richtersveld is an area that, as is shown elsewhere in this dossier, has 

survived with its universal value intact only because of appreciation by the 

community that has been the custodian of its natural resources and practitioners of 

its cultural values for a period of time that extends beyond human memory. This 

fundamental aspect of traditional protection is underpinned and supported by the 

modern legal system of South Africa that, at a multitude of levels, provides for the 

protection of all that is valued and cared for by the people of the Richtersveld and is 

in a broader sense of universal value and deserving of recognition by all of 

humankind. 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is subject to local, provincial and 

national legislation as well as the Conservancy’s regulations, such as those on land 

use, tourism and protection of plants and animals. 

Specific legislation affecting the protection of the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy: 

• Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) 

• Environmental Conservation Act (1989) 

• National Environmental Management Act (1998) 

• World Heritage Convention Act (1999)


• Natural Resource Heritage Act (1999) 

• The National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (2004) 

• The National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Amendment Act 

(2004) 

• Local Government: Municipal Structures Act (1998) 

Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) 

First and foremost as governing law in South Africa is the Constitution of the 

Republic of South Africa, specifically its Bill of Rights which includes specific 

environmental and cultural rights (Section 24 of Chapter 2). These rights have 

formed the cornerstone of the Conservancy in specific regards to sustainable 

development, ecological conservation and economic and social development. 

The Environmental Right: 

“Everyone has the right to have the environment protected, for the benefit of 

present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other 

measures that prevent pollution and ecological degradation; promote 

conservation; and secure ecologically sustainable development and use of 

natural resources while promoting justifiable economic and social 

development.” 

The Constitution also specifies that: 

“Persons belonging to a cultural, religious or linguistic community may not 

be denied the right, with other members of that community to enjoy their 

culture, practice their religion, and use their language; and to form, join and 

maintain cultural, religious and linguistic associations and other organs of 

civil society.” 

The history of dispossession lies deep in the Richtersveld, extending back to the 

1920s with the discovery of diamonds in the Alexander Bay area. The local people 

of the Richtersveld became people without any rights on their traditional land who


were dispossessed for the promotion of racial discrimination and for the state to tap 

the extensive diamond wealth on the land without returning revenues to the local 

people. The Richtersveld Community finally acted and in 2000 took steps to reclaim 

its birthright by applying for return of its land rights to the Commission on 

Restoration of Land Rights, the Land Claims Court and the Minister of Agriculture 

and Land Affairs. The community sees the land claim as part of a greater land 

transformation process in the Richtersveld area which extends beyond ownership 

and includes full control and benefits through livelihood development. The 

Communal Property Association aims to do so with the support of government, and 

by integrating with government-led processes at all levels. 

While the land claim involved areas outside of the Conservancy (since the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy has no mining activities), specifically those 

areas mined for diamonds, the community’s victory in ensuring their right to land 

provides necessary context with regards to legislation and the ownership of the 

Conservancy and demonstrates the Sida !hub Community Property Association’s 

(CPA) determination to keep its ancestral land. The South African Constitution 

specifies that: 

“A person or community dispossessed of property after 19 June, 1913 as a 

result of past racially discriminatory laws or practices is entitled, to the extent 

provided by an Act of Parliament, either to restitution of that property or to 

equitable redress.” 

World Heritage Convention Act (1999) 

The World Heritage Convention Act of 1999 incorporates into law the World 

Heritage Convention and provides for its enforcement and implementation. The Act 

also provides for the establishment of authorities to safeguard the integrity of the 

nation’s World Heritage Sites. It acknowledges that the damage, deterioration or 

disappearance of the nation’s heritage is a loss not only for the citizens of South 

Africa but for the entire world. The Act emphasizes sustainable development in 

accordance with the protection of the integrity of the nation’s ecological and cultural 

assets.


The Act specifies that disturbances to ecosystems, landscapes and sites that 

constitute the cultural and natural heritage of the nation and the loss of biological 

diversity must be avoided, and that “highly dynamic, sensitive, vulnerable or 

stressed ecosystems, such as coastal shores, dolomitic land and ridges, estuaries, 

wetlands, and similar ecosystems require specific attention in management and 

planning procedures, especially where they are subjected to significant human 

usage and development pressure” (the Act, 1999, p.10). These provisions of the 

Act are supported in law by the National Environmental Management Act of 1998 

and the Environmental Conservation Act of 1989. 

The Act requires the Government to establish authorities to ensure the protection of 

and responsible development in World Heritage Sites; to ensure the preparation of 

integrated management plans for inscribed sites; and to ensure necessary financial 

controls and auditing for management of the sites. An authority will be determined 

for every World Heritage Site, and such authorities will work hand-in hand in an 

integrated manner with local, district, provincial and national government and 

controlling bodies. 

National Environmental Management Act (1998) 

The National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) is the most important piece 

of environmental legislation. It serves to provide for cooperative environmental 

governance by establishing: 

• principles for decision making on matters affecting the environment; 

• institutions that will promote cooperative governance; and 

• procedures for coordinating environmental functions exercised by organs of 

state. 

NEMA focuses on regulating the following main aspects: development, planning, 

natural and cultural resources and their utilization, the control of pollution, and the 

management of waste. NEMA is heavily founded in the principles of sustainable


development and encourages the integration of natural, social and economic 

aspects of the environment. 

The principles set out in NEMA serve as the framework for environmental 

management and the formulation of implementation plans. They serve importantly 

as a control measure to which any organ of state must exercise any function when 

taking any decision concerning the protection of the environment. They also serve 

to inform recommendations for environmental planning and to guide the 

interpretation, administration and implementation of NEMA and other laws 

concerned with the protection or management of the environment. 

There are several important principles outlined in NEMA, which include the 

following: 

• Environmental management must place people and their needs at the 

forefront of its concern, and serve their physical, psychological, 

developmental, cultural and social interests equitably. 

• Development must be socially, environmentally and economically 

sustainable. 

• Decision making must be open and transparent and there must be free 

access to information. 

• The environment is held in trust by the state for the benefit of all South 

Africans. 

• The environment must be protected as the people’s common heritage. 

• Sensitive, vulnerable, highly dynamic or stressed ecosystems, such as 

coastal shores, estuaries, wetlands, and similar systems require specific 

attention in management and planning procedures, especially where they 

are subject to significant human resource usage and development pressure. 

Significant in regards to this nomination is the specification of the following 

principles: 

“That the disturbance of ecosystems and loss of biological diversity are avoided, or, 

where they cannot be altogether avoided, are minimised and remedied” and


“that the disturbance of landscapes and sites that constitute the nation’s cultural 

heritage is avoided, or where it cannot be altogether avoided, is minimised and 

remedied.” 

Environment Conservation Act 73 (1989) 

Many of the provisions in the Environmental Conservation Act 73 (ECA) have been 

replaced by NEMA. However, some significant aspects are still determined by ECA. 

It specifies the process for environmental management tools, including 

environmental impact assessments (EIAs) and under what circumstances they are 

required. Both NEMA and ECA are important in regards to World Heritage Sites 

because they determine what development will be permitted in a World Heritage 

Site and how damage to the environment or the cultural fabric of the place will be 

avoided. These decisions are made largely at the provincial level in Northern Cape 

Environmental Affairs and Tourism Department. 

A main purpose of ECA is to stipulate exactly what activities will trigger the need for 

an EIA and the Act lists these. The ECA Regulations have also been amended and 

updated to fully clarify issues that were previously vague or weak. It better defines 

the list and demands better decision making and accountability from governmental 

authorities and EIA practitioners. It also better outlines the details of the processes 

of environmental management and the needs for each phase of an EIA. 

The new EIA regulations also specify specific geographical areas which would 

demand environmental authorization. Relevant to this nomination, these include: 

• areas or sites identified by any legislation or in any government policy or 

plan that has been adopted for the purpose of protecting or conserving 

biological, water, landscape, geological, archaeological, palaeontological, 

architectural or cultural resources; 

• the core areas of biosphere reserves; and


• areas designated for conservation or protection by the Republic in terms of 

any international agreement, treaty or convention to which the Republic is a 

party. 

Regarding the Richtersveld Community Conservancy proposed World Heritage 

Site, relevant listed activities include off-road driving in sensitive areas, tourism and 

other development and road works. The Conservancy Management Committee 

encourages the implementation of the new regulations and has been trained in 

Environmental Management - specifically, EIA, Strategic Environmental 

Assessment (SEA) and Heritage Impact assessment (HIA) - with several members 

continuing to undergo advanced EIA training. 

National Heritage Resources Act (1999) 

The purpose of the National Heritage Resources Act (NHRA) is to promote good 

management and protection of the nation’s heritage resources and to protect the 

‘national estate’. The NHRA emphasises the value of cultural diversity in South 

Africa and the importance of its preservation in modern South Africa as a measure 

of healing, national wellbeing and understanding of the nation’s different cultures. 

The primary stipulations of the Act include the following: 

• Introduction of integrated and interactive systems to manage national 

heritage resources 

• Promotion of good governance 

• Empowerment of civil society to nurture and conserve that which it values 

• Setting of standards for heritage management throughout the country 

• Control of trade in cultural objects 

The Act makes numerous specifications relevant to the proposed World Heritage 

Site, incorporating the broad nature of cultural heritage. It defines heritage sites as 

part of the national estate and includes:


• places to which oral traditions are attached or which are associated with 

living heritage (such as the many physical sites and natural features of the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy); 

• landscapes and natural features of cultural significance (such as the 

Richtersveld Cultural Landscape); 

• structures and historical settlements (such as a the |haru oms); 

• ancestral graves (such as the Nama and San graves of the Richtersveld); 

• archaeological and palaeontological sites (such as middens and 

petroglyphs); 

• places with strong association with a particular community or cultural group 

for social, cultural or spiritual reasons (such as the Richtersveld for the 

Nama and Bosluis Baster people). 

The implementation of the Act is carried out jointly by the South African Heritage 

Resources Agency (SAHRA) and Provincial Heritage Resources Authorities, in this 

particular case Ngao Boshwa Kapa Bokoni (Heritage Northern Cape), the heritage 

authority of the Northern Cape Province. In line with contemporary international 

practice the NHRA provides for a wide range of measures for protecting different 

aspects of the national estate and, in accordance with the national Constitution 

which prescribes that responsibility for cultural matters is a shared competency of 

national and provincial government, allocates responsibility for different aspects of 

heritage conservation to SAHRA or the Provincial Heritage Resources Authorities. 

In terms of the NHRA the following areas appropriate to the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy enjoy automatic protection: 

• Rock art 

• Archaeological sites and material 

• Burial grounds and graves 

• Structures older than 60 years of age 

The Act also provides for the inclusion of heritage resources into the provisions for 

Environmental Impact Assessment described under discussion of the


Environmental Conservation Act. However, in order to create a management 

system for heritage resources any one of a number of options for ‘formal protection’ 

has to be gazetted by the appropriate heritage authority. In the case of the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy Heritage Area status is considered by the 

community and its advisers to be the most appropriate such measure (See 

discussion below). 

The National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (2004) 

This Act recently became part of South African law in order to support NEMA 

(1998) in regards to the conservation of biodiversity. It outlines its main purposes as 

to the management and conservation of the components of biodiversity, their 

sustainable use, and their equitable use. It stipulates that the methods of such 

conservation and management be supported by cooperative governance and to 

give effect to ratified international agreements relating to biodiversity. Finally it 

creates the South African National Biodiversity Institute to assist in achieving the 

Act’s objectives. 

The National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act (2004) 

This Act (Act No 57 of 2003) was amended by Act No 31 of 2004 to create revised 

Protected Areas regulations. The Act serves to provide: 

• for the protection and conservation of ecologically viable areas 

representative of South Africa’s biological diversity and its natural 

landscapes and seascapes; 

• for the establishment of a national resister of all national, provincial and local 

protected areas; 

• for the management of those areas in accordance with national norms and 

standards; 

• for intergovernmental co-operation and public consultation in matters 

concerning protected areas; 

• for the continued existence, governance and functions of South African 

National Parks;


The Act also specifies prohibited activities relating to World Heritage Sites, 

restricting the following activities: 

• Introduction of any species or specimen, or part thereof to a special nature 

reserve, national park or world heritage site; 

• Engagement in any restricted activity; 

• Wilful disturbance of any species or specimen; 

• Removal of any wood, firewood, sand, gravel, stone, sea shell, guano or 

other material; 

• The cutting, damage, removal or destruction of or the possession of any 

plant or any part thereof, dry wood or firewood, grass or other plant 

(including any marine plant); 

• The wilful cause of pollution, harm or death to any individual or population of 

any fauna or flora species. 

Local Government: Municipal Structures Act (1998) 

The Municipal Structures Act has been pivotal in bringing authority and control to 

local government, which in the Richtersveld has given the previously disadvantaged 

communities more participation in government. The Act sets forth the creation of 

local municipalities and the functions of the newly created municipalities. 

5.d. Existing Plans Relating to Municipality and Region in which the Proposed 

Property is Located 

Richtersveld Municipality Integrated Development Plans (2000,2002 and 2003) 

The principles and inputs generated by the Management of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy are designed to be complementary to other development 

and conservation frameworks in the region. All must be integrated with local, 

regional, national and international frameworks and initiatives, such as the 

Integrated Development Planning process as described below. 

Vision of the Richtersveld Municipality 

IDP 

“We must continuously strive to develop all 

the resources of the Richtersveld, including its 

natural, cultural and human resources in a 

manner that is sustainable and benefits the 

people of the region so that our future will be 

secure”


According to Municipal Systems Act of 2000, all municipalities are required to 

produce an Integrated Development Plan (IDP). The following steps must be 

followed in the IDP process: 

(1) Proper Public Participation to raise awareness in communities about the IDP 

process and how they get the opportunity to identify their needs. 

(2) Investigation of the natural, human and economic potential of the area’s 

resources to fulfil the above-mentioned IDP vision. 

(3) Annual monitoring and evaluation of the performance measures and 

changing circumstances. 

The Richtersveld Municipality has an excellent record of producing useful and 

comprehensive IDPs. The IDP is an important process in the region, because of the 

history of marginalisation of the people and the municipality’s ambition to provide 

better lives for the Richtersveld people. The first IDP was produced under the 

auspices of the old Richtersveld Transitional Council (RTC) when the Vision was 

coined that was later adopted by the entire municipal area. The amalgamated 

municipality produced its first IDP in 2002. Every year the IDP has been reviewed 

and several awareness meetings of the IDP process have been held in 

Eksteenfontein, Kuboes, Sandrift, Lekkersing, Port Nolloth and Alexander Bay. 

The 2002 IDP identified four priority areas for the Richtersveld: 

• Infrastructure and services 

• Livelihood and job creation 

• Conservation of natural and cultural resources 

• Normalising access and opportunity 

Some specific sectors identified as requiring further suitable development were: 

• Tourism 

• Infrastructure 

• Agriculture and Stockfarming


• Mining 

• Small / Medium Microenterprises (SMMEs) 

The Conservancy and the IDP 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy has, since its inception, been fully 

supported by the municipality and discussed in IDP 2002, IDP 2003 and IDP 

Review 2004. The IDP also emphasizes the importance of the Conservancy in the 

emerging Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation Area. 

World Heritage Site Feasibility Study 

The Feasibility Study for a World Heritage Site in the Richtersveld was 

commissioned by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) 

with support from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD). 

The purpose of the feasibility study was to: 

• examine the justification of parts of the Richtersveld to be a World Heritage 

Site, 

• examine possible borders and multiple components, 

• determine applicable criteria, 

• identify the process for establishing a World Heritage Site, 

• address the transfrontier character of the region, and 

• to ensure complete community involvement in the process through 

extensive consultation, workshops, and field trips. 

The Feasibility Study identified four possible scenarios for a World Heritage Site 

and was positively received by DEA&T and UNESCO, which subsequently made 

funding available for a complete nomination. 

Some specific policy papers with regard for national heritage include: 

• Tourism Policy Paper for the Northern Cape;


• White paper: Development and Promotion of Tourism in South Africa; 

• White Paper on Art, Culture and Heritage (available online at : 

http://www.gov.za/whitepaper/1997/artscult.htm. [26)


5.e. Property Management Plan 

Vision of the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy 

The Management Plan was 

To protect and manage the unique biodiversity and 

completed and approved by the 

natural landscape to the advantage of the local 

Management Committee of the 

people and all of humankind. 

Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy in August, 2004. The final plan was a result of a two year process of 

extensive drafting and consultation with the Richtersveld Community and serves to 

outline the principles by which the Core Area will operate, as well as a document to 

stipulate the specifics of how the Core Area will be operated. 

The Management Plan outlines the following principles and procedures: 

• Processes which have led to the creation and adoption of the Management 

Plan and the creation of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy. 

• Vision, Mission and General Guidelines and objectives for future 

management. 

• Ownership of the Richtersveld. 

• Importance of biological conservation and cultural preservation in the 

Conservancy. 

• Identification and involvement of roleplayers and stakeholders. 

• Status and scope of the area. 

• Election of Management structures. 

• Management Committee systems. 

• Functions of Management. 

• Principles for future agreements with interested parties and stakeholders. 

• Admission control. 

• Development processes and restrictions in the Conservancy. 

• Public awareness and education. 

• Capacity building of Management Committee. 

• Infrastructure (Roads, Airstrips, Waste Control, Rehabilitation). 

• Accordance with government and landowner (Community Property 

Association) policies.


• Tourism. 

• Research and filmmaking. 

• Communication structures between Management Committee, CPA, Local 

government, local people and stakeholders. 

In addition, specific operational plans have been drawn up and approved for the 

Conservancy with other plans still underway, including procedures to protect 

cultural assets. 

Completed plans: 

Communication Plan: This plan outlines the communication networks and 

structures between Management Committee members, local, provincial and 

national government, media, researchers, local people, stakeholders, CPA, and the 

semi-nomadic pastoralists residing within the Core Area. 

Financial Sustainability Plan: This plan outlines the financial reporting structures, 

operational costs, benefits to the broader community, and entrance and camping 

fee structures to ensure the future sustainability of the Core Area. 

Infrastructure Plan: This plan outlines the existing infrastructure in the Core Area 

including windmills, cultural heritage sites (petroglyphs, graves and sites of cultural 

value), seasonal livestock camps, campsites, fences, roads, waterpoints, 

information centres, entrance gates, signage, guesthouses and buildings. The plan 

describes the guidelines for future development in the Core Area and protection of 

cultural heritage sites. 

Implementation Plan: This plan sets forth the processes of how the infrastructure 

plan will be implemented and specifically how development will occur and with what 

funding. It is a dynamic document which is continually updated to guide the 

Management in future planning. 

Marketing Plan: This plan outlines how the Conservancy will brand itself and 

identifies the key tourism markets. It also outlines the different marketing tools, such


as print, film, and web media and collaboration with beneficial, principled and 

relevant organisations and associations. 

Plans in process 

Monitoring and Evaluation Plan: This plan is underway to set forth the principles 

and structures for the Core Area to monitor its biological and cultural resources and 

their health. It will also set forth the process for necessary actions required in the 

case of damage to biological or cultural assets. 

Tourism Plan: This plan will outline specifically how tourism is to be managed and 

controlled in the Core Area. The Marketing Plan focuses on how tourism will be 

generated and the Tourism Plan will ensure that tourism is carried out in 

accordance with the principles of conservation and sustainability as specified in the 

Management Plan. 

Zoning Plan: This plan will zone the Core Area into three primary areas: Townlands 

(Kuboes and Eksteenfontein), Tourism Use Areas, Wilderness Areas, and specific 

Sensitive Sites (cultural heritage sites and sensitive botanical sites) which will 

require additional monitoring and strict protection. 

Sustainable Management Plan: This plan will not be restricted to the Core Area but 

is underway through a Global Environmental Facility (GEF) project to zone land 

uses throughout the entire communal areas of the Richtersveld: the Core Area and 

the Buffer Zones. The plan will build upon the existing Grazing Plan of the CPA for 

the communal grazing areas, and will create a holistic plan based on sustainable 

use of the natural resources. This will ensure that the buffer zones to the Core Area 

are under proper management. 

Environmental Response Plan: This plan is also planned under the GEF grant to 

supplement the Core Area’s Monitoring and Evaluation Plan, but will include the 

broader area including the buffer zones of the Core Area.


Management of Cultural Assets Plan: This plan will specifically look at the 

sustainable use and preservation of cultural assets, both in terms of ‘hard’ fixed 

assets such as petroglyphs and cultural habits that can be eroded in the interface 

with tourism and other livelihoods. 

5.f. Sources of Finance 

The culture and biodiversity of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy has been 

recognized by several organizations who have contributed funds for conservation of 

the natural and cultural heritage. Additionally, several government programmes 

have made funds available for economic development and improvement of 

infrastructure. 

Past funding which was instrumental in the development and growth of the 

Conservancy include the following: 

GTZ/TRANSFORM which facilitated the establishment of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy Reference Group which was later turned into the 

Management Committee of the Conservancy which currently manages the property. 

The project also facilitated the development of the Sida !hub Community Property 

Association. 

Norwegian Development Cooperation Agency (NORAD) and Department of 

Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) which funded the Richtersveld 

Heritage Project which focused on the establishment of museum network and 

cultural guide training course, preparation of a feasibility study for the Richtersveld 

Proposed World Heritage Site and development of a cultural awareness group in 


United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) which funded the development 

of the Rooiberg Research Centre, the succulent nursery, and the mapping of 

wilderness trails in the Conservancy.


Conservation International (on-going until 2007) which continues to fund the 

Community Based Natural Resource Management Programme (CBNRM) which 

has facilitated the development and management of the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy. The main tasks going forward of the CBNRM Programme include: 

• Capacity building of the Management Committee of the Conservancy 

• Capacity building of the Operational Committee of the Conservancy in 

Protected Area Management. 

• Elaborations and extensions to the Management Plan 

• Stakeholder Involvement in the Conservancy 

• Incorporation of conservation activities into local school programmes 

• Basic training in tourism and business management and support for Small 

and Medium Microenterprises (SMMEs) 

• Improvement of infrastructure (erection of signage, maintenance of the 

Rooiberg Research Centre) 

• Salaries for the Conservancy Manager and Richtersveld CBNRM 

Coordinator 

• Exploring management options for the emerging Greater !Gariep 

Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) 

• Awareness Raising about the TFCA and strengthening of ties between the 

Conservancy and the Namibian //Gamaseb Communal Conservancy 

Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T; on-going until 

2007) which has allocated the equivalent of $1 million through Social Responsibility 

Projects for the improvement of infrastructure and development of tourism facilities 

in the Conservancy. Specific tasks and activities include: 

• Upgrading of 198 km of road network within the Conservancy 

• Upgrading of 8 camp sites in the Conservancy as eco-friendly, wilderness 

camps for private camping 

• Upgrading of Rooiberg entrance gate & guesthouse in the Conservancy 

• Construction of an overnight hut at Basterfontein in the Conservancy


• Provision of accredited and non accredited training to 75 people in tourism 

and business training 

• Marketing of the Conservancy 

Global Environment Facility (GEF; on-going until 2010) which is developing an 

Environmental Management System and an Environmental Response Plan for the 

communal areas of the Richtersveld, comprising the Conservancy and its buffer 

zones of the Communal Grazing Areas. It is also planning to map the biological 

assets of the two areas. 

The Richtersveld Company for Sustainable Development (RCSD), an NGO 

established by the Richtersveld Municipality, has received a grant of US$887,000 

from the GEF to implement the Richtersveld Community Biodiversity Conservation 

Project (RCBCP). The goal of the project is to protect the globally significant 

biodiversity of the Succulent Karoo biome through a strong system of communitybased 

biodiversity conservation in partnership with key stakeholders. 

Specific activities and services will include: 

• A systematic conservation planning assessment; 

• An environmental planning and development system and manual; 

• Legal support to the Richtersveld Community Conservancy; 

• An ecological management plan and grazing management plans; 

• A community-based biodiversity monitoring and rapid response system; 

• Training and capacity building; 

• Assistance towards expanding the Financial Sustainability Plan for the 

Conservancy; 

• Financial, administrative and institutional arrangements for the 

Conservancy; 

• Infrastructure plans including dirt roads upgrade, alien vegetation removal, 

signage, boardwalks, fencing, bushcamps and site rehabilitation; 

• Tourism marketing and responsible tourism guidelines for operators; 

• Museum installations and awareness raising brochures.


5.g. Sources of Expertise 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy has open access to government and 

non-government expertise, and several government departments are actively 

involved in the Richtersveld Community Conservancy’s development in providing 

technical advice, direction and access to resources. The Richtersveld Local 

Municipality, in particular, has a member on the Conservancy Management 

Committee and provides the Richtersveld Community Conservancy with direct 

access to the Mayor. Other organs of government and organisations with available 

expertise for the Richtersveld Community Conservancy and whose expertise has 

been offered to and utilized by the Conservancy include: 

• Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T). At national 

level, DEA&T can assist the Richtersveld Community Conservancy with 

challenges which require the attention of the highest level of government. 

DEA&T has also recently allocated 6 million Rands (equivalent to $1 million 

USD) to the Conservancy for the development of tourism and infrastructure 

and for training and job creation in the Conservancy. DEA&T remains an 

active sponsor and advocate of the Conservancy as a model communitybased 

protected area. 

• Director - Museums, Archives & Libraries, Northern Cape Provincial 

Department of Sport, Arts & Culture. The Director, Museums, Archives 

and Libraries has consistently been involved with the preservation of 

Richtersveld culture and in research on the |haru oms architecture. The 

Director provides an important resource for heritage preservation and 

promotion. 

• South African Heritage Resource Association (SAHRA). SAHRA serves 

a useful information base for the Conservancy.


• South African National Parks (SANParks). SANParks has assisted the 

Conservancy in Protected Area Management training through workshops in 

the region and through invitations to several South African national parks, both 

in and outside of the region, to provide expertise and training to the 

Conservancy Management. 

• Legal Resources Centre (LRC). The LRC was pivotal in assisting the greater 

Richtersveld Community in regaining traditional land which was taken from 

them during Apartheid. It helped the community win an historic land claim in 

the Constitutional Court and is available for advice and assistance in landbased 

legal matters. 

• South African Biodiversity Institute (SANBI). SANBI is an important 

resource for botanical information and data for the Conservancy. Access to 

information and botanical experts assist the Conservancy in managing its 

valuable biological estate. 

• International Knowledge Management (IKM). IKM is a non-profit 

organisation very active in the Richtersveld which offers technical advice and 

on-the-ground operational assistance to the Conservancy. IKM gives the 

Conservancy access to a wide diversity of scientists and experts in 

sustainable livelihood creation, financial management, biodiversity 

conservation, capacity building and research. 

• McGregor Museum. The McGregor Museum offers expertise in the 

preservation and presentation of cultural artefacts to the Conservancy and the 

Eksteenfontein Museum. 

• Member of Executive Committee for Department of Environmental and 

Tourism (Northern Cape Province). At Provincial level, the MEC has 

supported and offered resources to the Conservancy to develop its human 

capacity and to grow as a protected area.


• Richtersveld Municipality. As a staunch supporter of the Conservancy, 

local government has given technical advice, strategic direction and 

governmental support to the Conservancy. Integration between local 

government and the Conservancy Management has resulted in useful 

access to resources and expertise available to the Conservancy. 

• Richtersveld Community Based Natural Resource Management 

Programme (CBNRM). The CBNRM Programme is funded by Conservation 

International and based in Eksteenfontein, the management centre for the 

Conservancy. The CBNRM Coordinator has been involved and active from 

the very beginning of the development of the Conservancy and continues to 

provide daily operational, managerial and technical advice to the 

Conservancy Management. The CBNRM Programme also assists in 

harnessing synergies between the Conservancy and other Protected Areas 

and in developing the evolving Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation 

Area (TFCA). 

• EcoAfrica Environmental Consultants has played the leading role in 

terms of facilitation, integrated conservation and development planning, fund 

raising activities and providing expertise directly to the conservancy itself in 

terms of institutional capacity building and the establishment of the 

management plan over the last eight years. It has also mustered expertise 

from academics and experts from a range of institutions and organisations, 

including the University of Cape Town, CapeNature, BluePebble 

Independent Environmental Assessment and many others. The organisation 

strongly encourages the involvement of all potential partners that can add 

value to the conservancy and strives to devolve its own roles to that of the 

Operational and Management Committee as speedily as possible. 

5.h. Visitor Facilities 

The Richtersveld represents one of the most remote areas of South Africa and 

Namibia. The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is a young protected area, but 

has since its inception been the focus of several tourism and development


programmes. The purpose has been to promote community-based tourism focused 

on the interesting and appealing culture and the extraordinary floral character of the 

area – particularly the annual flower display. Tourism is now blossoming in the 

Richtersveld. 

Several tourism-related initiatives have helped the Richtersveld, and the 

Conservancy in particular, find its place on South African’s tourism map. 

Tourism Information Centres (TICs), Museums and Facilities 

There are two TICs in the Conservancy area, located in the towns of Kuboes and 

Eksteenfontein. These TICs are strategically located on the western and south 

boundaries of the Conservancy, to assist visitors arriving from either side of the 

protected area. At each TIC, there is a tourism information officer who sells maps of 

the Conservancy, books accommodation for visitors in the Conservancy’s 

guesthouses and who in general assists visitors with orientation and plans for their 

stay in the Conservancy. There are also local crafts and textiles for sale at the TIC, 

which are produced by a local, women-run business. The tourism information officer 

also collects entrance and camping fees from visitors. In addition, information is 

distributed at the Rooiberg Guesthouse, located inside the Conservancy boundaries 

and which also serves to collect entrance and camping fees from people accessing 

the area from the East. 

Additional information centres can be found throughout the region which distribute 

information about the Conservancy and publicise the Conservancy’s 

accommodation, activities and general cultural and biological wonders. These 

include: 

• Diggers Camp Multipurpose Resource Centre and Guesthouse (Alexander 

Bay); 

• Multipurpose Resource Centre (Hondeklip Bay) 

• Port Nolloth Museum (Port Nolloth) 

• Arts and Crafts Centre (Steinkopf) 

• Richtersveld Municipality offices (Port Nolloth)


Shops are available in all of the towns in the Richtersveld, including Kuboes and 

Eksteenfontein which border the Conservancy. Petrol, although not available in 

Kuboes, Lekkersing or Eksteenfontein, is available in all of the other towns. Food 

can be catered for by any of the guesthouses. 

The Eksteenfontein Museum was recently established through the Richtersveld 

Heritage Project with support from a grant from the Norwegian Agency for 

Development Cooperation (NORAD). It exhibits artefacts from the pastoral history 

of the Richtersveld people and has also recorded the oral history from the elder 

people of the Conservancy. There is also the Port Nolloth Museum which has very 

good exhibits and information on the greater Richtersveld region, including the 

Conservancy. 

Guesthouses 

There are numerous hotels, guesthouses and campsites (many community-owned 

and operated) in the greater Richtersveld. In Kuboes and Eksteenfontein, located 

on the edge of the Conservancy, there are two guesthouses catering for tourists 

and researchers. Kom Rus ‘n Bietjie Guesthouse and The Plantation offer 

accommodation and food and assist with excursions throughout the Conservancy. 

Within the Conservancy boundaries the Rooiberg Guesthouse is the only 

guesthouse thus far that has been permitted to be built by the Conservancy 

Management Committee. It also serves as an information centre. At Rooiberg, there 

is also the small Rooiberg Research Centre under development which will have 

information on the botanical aspects of the Conservancy with the small nursery and 

succulent garden exhibiting some of the Conservancy’s indigenous flora. The 

Research Centre will also host visiting scientists, researchers and students studying 

the area’s succulent plants. There are also plans to convert an old washhouse into 

a small observatory for stargazers. More information on the Conservancy 

guesthouses can be found at www.richtersveldguesthouses.co.za.


Additional accommodation is available in the towns of Lekkersing, Port Nolloth, 

Alexander Bay, Sandrift, Steinkopf, Springbok and in the adjacent Richtersveld 

National Park. 

Campsites 

The Conservancy is a vast wilderness with unlimited potential for camping. 

Historically, it was the domain of only the most intrepid travellers, but is gaining 

appeal and tourism is growing. The Conservancy Management Committee took the 

proactive decision in 2004 to manage tourism and campsites to prevent people 

from camping in sensitive areas and to focus people on existing camping areas. 

Currently, there are eight official campsites, which can be booked and paid for at 

the TICs. These sites are being upgraded by the 6 million rand Social Responsibility 

Project from Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism but will remain low 

impact and with limited infrastructure. Sites are small and ecologically friendly in 

which only one group can camp at a time and from which all waste must be carried 

out. Because of the fragility of the area, there are no large campsites with extensive 

infrastructure in the Conservancy. 

There are additional campsites outside neighbouring towns and in the Richtersveld 

National Park. 

Field Guides 

The Conservancy has several professionally trained guides who have certification 

with the Field Guides Association of South Africa (FGASA) and the Department of 

Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T). They are available for hire at the two 

Tourism Information Centres (TICs) in the Conservancy area, and escort travellers 

to places of interest in the Conservancy. There are two types of guides: cultural 

guides who focus on explaining the cultural aspects of the Conservancy and nature 

guides who lead hikes and inform guests on the magnificent botanical wealth of the 

Conservancy. There are two mapped trails in the Conservancy which are currently 

being demarcated and there are uncountable backcountry trails and loops which 

can be undertaken on day trips or longer treks.


The Conservancy also has a significant stretch of the Orange River, which is one of 

the most remote sections of the river along its entire course in South Africa. There 

are guided river rafting and kayaking trips available at several campsites along the 

Orange River outside the Conservancy. 

Statistics 

The Northern Cape Province is the largest, but least visited and most remote 

province in South Africa. It also receives the fewest tourists, which makes it an 

unspoiled treasure for the nature purest and for those wanting an authentic glimpse 

into traditional South African life and Nama culture. 

Visitors have for many years travelled to the Conservancy for camping and 

exploring the Conservancy’s remote backcountry. Historically, people travelled to 

the Conservancy free and were able to move around without restriction or control. 

In 2004 the Management Committee instated Conservancy regulations and in 2005 

began accepting entrance and camping fees. Only recently has the Conservancy 

started trying to capture official statistics, but overall the sentiment is that tourism is 

increasing healthily, in light of recent publicity for the Conservancy in the press and 

of the greater Namaqualand’s fantastic flower display. 

The Conservancy remains very seasonal with the months of September and 

October being the most popular and those during which the flowers bloom. The 

summer months: January, February and March are extremely hot in the 

Richtersveld and during this time fewer people visit the area. Record keeping for 

visitors in the Conservancy has only recently begun in earnest. Previously, entrance 

was free, but the Management Committee made the decision to keep records in 

order to capture visitation trends. Most of the visitation is by people passing along 

the boundary of the Conservancy on the main gravel road and thus not required to 

pay entrance fees. As a result, the numbers do not accurately reflect the visitation 

to the Conservancy, which is approximately 3000 people per year.


Monthly visitation to the Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

Month Overnight Visitors Vehicles (passing 

through) 

October, 2004 22 19 

November, 2004 48 12 

December, 2004 32 23 

January, 2005 16 9 

February, 2005 0 15 

March, 2005 13 28 

April, 2005 34 47 

May, 2005 32 45 

June, 2005 38 96 

July, 2005 62 95 

August, 2005 69 117 

5.i. Policies and programmes related to the presentation and promotion of the 

property 

Above all, the South African Heritage Resource Agency (SAHRA) is tasked with 

ensuring protection and publicity of South Africa’s heritage. However, there are 

several campaigns specific to the Northern Cape, the Richtersveld Community 

Conservancy and the Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA). 

The Northern Cape is the driest and most remote province in South Africa. As a 

result tourism is not as large a sector as in other parts of the country. However, 

there are numerous tourism drawcards for the region and several ‘flagship’ 

locations, including the Richtersveld. The Province’s mantras “Follow the sun, not 

the crowds”, “The land of contrasts where less is more” and “A land of sunny days 

and starry nights” hone in on the tourism appeal of wide open spaces and big skies. 

The province also has substantial information pamphlets, maps, tourism and 

accommodation information available throughout the province which highlight the 

natural attributes such as geological and botanical aspects, and cultural attributes, 

such as rock art and Nama and San culture.


Specific promotional initiatives and frameworks can be found on the following 

websites: 

• Richtersveld Community Conservancy: www.richtersveld.net 

The Conservancy’s own website highlights the attractions and activities on offer 

in the Conservancy. 

• Richtersveld Guesthouses: www.richtersveldguesthouses.co.za 

The Richtersveld Guesthouses’ website markets and provides information on 

the Rus ‘n Bietjie Guesthouse (in Eksteenfontein) and the Rooiberg Guesthouse 

(the only accommodation facility located inside the Conservancy). 

• South-North Tourism Route (SNTR): www.south-north.co.za 

This website and tourism framework outlines the destinations along the Western 

Coast of South Africa with a focus on the Richtersveld as a top destination. 

Facilitated by EcoAfrica with social responsibility funding from DEA&T the 

SNTR is owned and increasingly operated by local communities lying along the 

route between Cape Town and the border of Namibia who are striving to 

develop a destination based firmly on the principles of equitable, responsible 

and sustainable tourism under the ownership of local communities and to 

benefit the natural environment through awareness raising. The SNTR serves 

as a large overall tourism driver for the Richtersveld and emphasizes the 

Conservancy as one of its feature attractions along the “Richtersveld Route”, a 

tourism route framework focusing on the Conservancy. 

• Distance Learning and Information Sharing Tool: www.dlist.org 

This is an interactive information sharing platform which has enabled the wide 

range of roleplayers involved with or living along the coastal areas of the 

Benguela Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) from government to NGOs to local 

stockfarmers to engage with each other on matters of conservation, 

development and livelihood creation. DLIST has been a prominent medium in 

the discussion over the World Heritage Site nomination and the emerging 

Greater !Gariep Transfrontier Conservation Area. The Management Committee 

members of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy provide an active voice 

on the platform sharing experiences and discussing issues with similar 

protected areas in South Africa and Namibia. 

• Northern Cape Tourism: www.northcape.co.za


This is a general website highlighting the attractions of the Northern Cape 

Province, including the Richtersveld. 

Additional promotion active in drawing visitors to the Conservancy is the 

collaboration between different frameworks and destinations along the West Coast 

of South Africa and Southern Namibia. Other tourism routes such as the Crayfish 

Trail, the Diamond Route and the Flower Route (all available on www.southnorth.co.za) 

all maintain links with the Conservancy and drive business to each 

other. Useful links have also been established and maintained with private nature 

reserves and communal conservancies in Southern Namibia leveraging the 

transfrontier nature of the region. Marketing and collaborative booking strategies 

have been established between the Conservancy and tourism enterprises on both 

sides the border, such as //Gamaseb Communal Conservancy, Klein Aus Vista 

Nature Reserve, and Brukkaros Communal Conservancy all located in Southern 

Namibia. 

Several specific projects and programmes have assisting publicizing the 

Conservancy and transfrontier region, including: 

• Richtersveld Community Conservancy Social Responsibility Project: 

Implementation of poverty relief project to develop community-based 

tourism, improve infrastructure, create sustainable livelihoods and market 

the Richtersveld Community Conservancy (funded by Department of 

Environmental Affairs and Tourism). 

• Facilitation of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy and 

Transfrontier linkages with communities in Namibia: Support to the 

Conservancy and where necessary, local involvement in the Greater !Gariep 

Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) and building of transfrontier links 

with Namibian communities (funded by Conservation International). 

• Richtersveld Community Based Natural Resource Management 

Programme (CBNRM): Engaged in various initiatives to publicize the 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy and the region through 

representation at World Parks Congress, the Summit on Sustainable


Development and the development of websites and other promotional 

material (funded by Conservation International). 

• Development of a Small Business Strategy for the Richtersveld: 

Development of a Small Business Strategy and facilitation of tourism 

training development for key personnel in the South-North Tourism Route 

Association (SNTRA) and Richtersveld Tourism Association (RTA) in order 

to publicize the Richtersveld Community Conservancy and surrounding 

areas (funded by GTZ/Transform). 

5.j Staffing Levels 

The Richtersveld Community Conservancy is a community-owned and managed 

protected area. The creation and development of the Conservancy was carried out 

with the understanding from the beginning that capacity building of local people and 

managers was a constant priority. In an area which only a decade ago was still 

being actively and negatively impacted by Apartheid and the restrictions for 

economic and skills growth, the Conservancy has progressed successfully, but still 

requires training and improvement of the skills base of the community members 

involved in the operations and management of the Conservancy. 

Significantly the Provincial Department of Arts, Sports and Culture and the 

Department of Tourism, Environment and Conservation (DTEC) have indicated to 

jointly funds a further full-time position for the Conservancy which will boost 

sustainability of the staff component. 

There have been numerous projects before and since the Conservancy’s inception 

which have focused on capacity building and training. The majority of these 

initiatives have focused on tourism, management, conservation and environmental 

management, financial management and accounting. 

The Conservancy Manager and Conservancy Administrative Officer regularly attend 

short courses and on-site training to supplement their skills and continually to 

improve their ability to operate the Conservancy.


Some specific training and capacity building exercises which have taken place for 

Conservancy management and members of the community include (d): 

Protected Area Management 

The Conservancy Management has undertaken several trainings to build capacity 

in Protected Area Management. Several members have experience with South 

African National Parks (SANParks) in administration and management. Additionally, 

the administrative capacity of the Conservancy has been built through professional 

bookkeeping and accounting courses in Cape Town. In 2005, the Conservancy 

Manager and Administrative Officer undertook an exchange with SANParks to 

Cape Peninsula National Park and West Coast National Park to strengthen skills in 

Protected Area Management and conservation of sensitive floral ecosystems. The 

focus was to bring the skills that have been used in the Fynbos Biodiversity Hotspot 

and Cape Floral Region World Heritage Site to the Conservancy as part of the 

Succulent Karoo Biodiversity Hotspot. Additional training courses have been held 

by SANParks from the Richtersveld National Park for various members of the 

community in the Conservancy. 

The Conservancy Management also undertakes regular visits to southern Namibia 

to develop cultural linkages between similar protected areas in the Greater !Gariep 

TFCA, such as //Gamaseb Communal Conservancy. These visits also enable the 

Conservancy Management to visit and learn from other commercial and communal 

conservancies and national parks. 

The Conservancy staff also benefit regularly from on-hand expertise of and training 

from the Richtersveld CBNRM Programme, located in Eksteenfontein on the border 

of the Conservancy. The CBNRM Programme serves a vital role in the Richtersveld 

and builds capacity in conservation, development. Another useful nongovernmental 

organisation, International Knowledge Management (IKM) also 

serves as a vast technical resource for capacity building of the Conservancy 

Management. Please refer to the Section 5.G (Sources of Expertise) for more 

information.


Environmental Assessment (EA) 

An on-site short course introducing the principles of environmental assessment, 

including Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Strategic Environmental 

Assessment (SEA) and Social Impact Assessment (SIA) was completed in 2005 by 

the Conservancy Manager, Administrative Officer, members of the Management 

Committee, Local Government, the Environmental Committee of the Sida !hub 

Community Property Association and the Richtersveld Community-Based Natural 

Resource Management (CBNRM) Coordinator. 

A second and more advanced EA course was undertaken by the same group in 

2005 which focused on Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) and further details of 

public participation and processes of EIAs. 

To supplement these short courses the Conservancy Manager and Administrative 

Officer also completed professional courses in EIA obtaining certificates from 

Potchefstroom University. The Conservancy Management Committee has placed a 

great deal of importance on planning and due process in EA especially with regards 

to any new developments in the region. 

Mapping and Global Information Systems (GIS) 

The Conservancy has a mapping team located in Eksteenfontein, trained in Global 

Information Systems. Computer facilities are available in the Management offices to 

create and update maps off the Conservancy and to capture information and 

locations of specific sites in the field. The Conservancy Mapping Team has created 

maps for tourism and management purposes, demarcated trails, and logged 

information of roads, fences and sites of interest. The Mapping Team is also 

planning to undertake the assignment of mapping of the threatened Aloe pillansii, 

which is almost entirely restricted to the land inside the Conservancy.


Tourism 

There are several field guides and cultural guides available to escort visitors around 

the Conservancy. Cultural Guides are available for town tours to gain insight into 

local culture and history, and also there are Registered Field Guides who can guide 

people deeper into the Conservancy to explore the wilderness and ecological 

wealth. These guides are trained in First Aid and certified guides with the Field 

Guides Association of South Africa (FGASA) and registered with the Department of 

Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T). Additional professional staff includes 

the Tourism Information Officer, located in Eksteenfontein and the Curator of the 

Eksteenfontein Museum who both are well versed in the local culture and heritage 

of the Conservancy and facilitate tourism activities for tours, camping and 

overnights at the Conservancy guesthouses. 

Under a grant from Conservation International and a Medium-Sized Project from 

the GEF necessary training will continue over the next two years, increasingly 

focusing also on the capacity building of the Management Committee.


6. Monitoring 

Monitoring methods which can be implemented to record changes, improvements 

or deterioration in the natural and cultural Richtersveld environment include the 

following: 

• Assessment of localities of specific species to understand and monitor 

trends and populations. This can be done through regular mapping 

exercises. Specific species which can be targeted are Aloe pillansii, 

A.dichotoma and Pachypodium namaquanum. Exact numbers of specific 

species, numbers of young plants and locations within rainfall zones must 

be determined to identify population threats. 

• Monitoring of grazing activities and trends and use of seasonal livestock 

posts through surveys in the summer and winter months to determine usage 

and increases or decreases in utilization of livestock posts in the 

Conservancy. 

• Survey of impact of grazing on vegetation, with an emphasis on succulents. 

This can be carried out through the observation and study of different 

fenced plots with varying numbers of present livestock. 

• Survey of overall vegetation cover through satellite imagery and aerial 

photographs. 

• Comprehensive study on number and location of |haru oms. This can 

expand on the previous work undertaken cataloguing the Richtersveld’s 

|haru oms. The study must incorporate condition and usage of |haru oms to 

determine the overall status of the traditional architecture and its role in 

Nama society. 

• Fixed point photography of sensitive areas can be carried out at regular 

intervals to assess vegetation cover and trends.


Several projects have been funded to assist the Conservancy and the Grazing 

Areas in the buffer zone to monitor natural and cultural resources. As discussed in 

Section 5.f (Sources of Finance), Global Environment Facility has begun a five year 

project which will map and take inventory of the biological assets of the Core Area 

and the Buffer Zones and put in place a community-based biodiversity monitoring 

and rapid response system. Additional research is planned to assess the human 

use of plants for medicinal or traditional purposes. The hoodia plant which exists in 

the Conservancy has been widely publicised for its use by the San people of the 

Kalahari for suppression of appetite and there are numerous other species used by 

the Nama in the Conservancy. Intangible Heritage is also a field for further research 

to catalogue oral history, song and tradition. This was started under by the curator 

of the Eksteenfontein Museum, but will need to be expanded to comprehensively 

preserve this living history. 

Additionally, Conservation International, through its Richtersveld Community Based 

Natural Resource Management Programme (CBNRM) has made funding available 

for the development of a Monitoring Plan for the Conservancy to supplement the 

Management Plan. The Monitoring Plan for the Conservancy is planned to be 

completed by mid-2006.


6.a. Key Indicators for Measuring State of Conservation 

The indicators listed below can all be expressed numerically to show quantitatively 

trends and overall health of the cultural or natural heritage aspect. Locations of the 

records, as have been written into the Conservancy Research Plan, must be 

retained in the administrative offices of the Conservancy in Eksteenfontein. 

Botanical data will also be kept at the South African National Biodiversity Institute 

and cultural data will also be kept at the Northern Cape Department of Sports, Arts 

and Culture. 

Indicator Periodicity 

Number of |haru oms and percentage of natural material 5 years, based on original 

used. 

survey in 2001 

Number of traditional seasonal livestock posts. 5 years, in conjunction with 

survey of |haru oms 

Number of people residing in the Conservancy 5 years in conjunction with 

other cultural surveys 

Average size of goat and sheep herds. 5 years in conjunction with 

other cultural surveys 

Number of Aloe pillansii in winter rainfall areas Depending on initial survey 

findings 

Number of young A. pillansii plants in winter rainfall areas Depending on initial survey 

findings 

Number of A. pillansii in summer rainfall areas. Depending on initial survey 

findings 

Number of young A. pillansii plants in summer rainfall areas Depending on initial survey 

findings 

Number of Pachypodium namaquanum winter rainfall areas Depending on initial survey 

findings 

Number of young Pachypodium namaquanum plants winter Depending on initial survey 

rainfall areas 

findings 

Number of P. namaquanum in summer rainfall areas. Depending on initial survey 

findings 

Number of young Pachypodium namaquanum plants Depending on initial survey 

summer rainfall areas 

findings 

6.b. Administrative Arrangement for Monitoring the Property 

The property will be monitored along the lines of Integrated Environmental 

Management (IEM) procedures. Monitoring the property will involve to the extent 

possible the full consultation and involvement of local people. 

Monitoring will be carried out by the Operational Team that reports to the 

Conservancy Management Committee, with support from the Richtersveld


Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) Programme. These 

two structures will form the base from which monitoring will be conducted and 

recorded. Monitoring activities will be carried out in accordance with the Monitoring 

Plan of the Conservancy which will be completed by mid-2006, after which it will be 

endorsed by the Management Committee and made as an annex to the 

Management Plan. 

The Management Committee and the Richtersveld CBNRM Programme will receive 

technical support from several support and research organisations including 

International Knowledge Management and the South African National Biodiversity 

Institute (SANBI) with leading authorities on botanical research. Additionally, for the 

next five years the Global Environment Facility Project in the Richtersveld will be 

conducting biological asset mapping and inventory in the Core Area and Buffer 

Zones. All activities will pay special attention to capacity building of local human 

resources to ensure sustainable monitoring programmes into the future. 

6.c. Previous Reporting Exercises 

Specific reporting exercises relating to World Heritage in the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy include the Annual Reports of the Sida !hub 

Community Property Association (CPA) 2001, 2002, 2004. Specific references 

to World Heritage nomination were made in all three annual reports. 

The Manager of the Conservancy does monthly reporting and a special section will 

be created for the World Heritage Site in this reporting. In addition, quarterly 

reporting is carried out by the Management Committee of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy. They report on development initiatives, funding reports, 

conservation programmes, monitoring of the area, relations with stakeholders as 

well as day-to-day operational issues. This reporting is recorded in the Minutes of 

the Richtersveld Community Conservancy Management Committee meetings. 

On a broader scale for all the communal land in the Richtersveld including the 

Conservancy, reporting exercises are recorded in the Minutes of specific and 

relevant meetings of the CPA.


Specific reporting exercises pertaining to conservation and development activities 

are reported on by the Richtersveld Community Based Natural Resource 

Management Programme (CBNRM), located in Eksteenfontein. 

Additionally, specific reporting was carried out on the traditional architecture of the 

Richtersveld in the 2001 Survey of the Traditional Architecture of the Namas of 

the Richtersveld. 

This document was commissioned by the South African Heritage Resources 

Agency and carried out by the Northern Cape Department of Sport, Arts and 

Culture with participation from ICOMOS. The purpose of the survey was to fulfil the 

following aims: 

• To produce a documentation report of the |haru oms; the traditional reed 

mat domed huts of the Nama). 

• To produce drawings of huts in a qualitative sample survey. 

• To document the location of |haru oms in the village of Kuboes. 

• To document present day use of the |haru oms. 

• To set the construction and use of the huts within a cultural and physical 

context. 

• To document the construction methods. 

• To construct, document and deconstruct a |haru oms for relocation and 

reconstruction at the McGregor Museum in the provincial capital, Kimberly. 

Plans are underway for another survey to take place following on this 2001 report to 

gather information on trends and the preservation of Nama architecture and its 

present day use in the Richtersveld.


7. Documentation 

7.a. Photographs, slides, image inventory and authorization table and other 

audiovisual materials. Inserted on following page. 

7.b. Texts relating to protective designation, copies of property management 

plans or documented systems and extracts of other plans relevant to the 

property. 

Documentation provided in the nomination file includes: 

Legislation and Policy (Appendix E) 

• National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Amendment Act (Act 

No. 31 of 2004). 

• National Heritage Resources Act, 1999 

• World Heritage Convention Act, 1999 

• National Environmental Management Act, 1998 

• Richtersveld Municipality Integrated Development Plan, 2000 

• Richtersveld Municipality Integrated Development Plan, 2002 (Note: IDP 

2003 is only available in the Afrikaans language and is not included, but is 

summarized as requested with other IDPs in Section 5.d.) 

Management (Appendix D) 

• Management Plan of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy, 2004 

• Infrastructure Plan of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy, 2004 

• Communications Plan of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy, 2004 

• Marketing Plan of the Richtersveld Community Conservancy, 2005. 

Relevant studies Appendix B and Appendix C) 

• Hall, A., 2001. The Traditional Architecture of the Namas of the 

Richtersveld. 

• EcoAfrica, 2004. The Greater !Gariep Proposed World Heritage Site: A 

Feasibility Study.


Species List (Appendix F) 

A full list of related reports, plans and legislation is described in Sections 5.b., 5.d. 

and 5.e. and can be provided. 

7.c. and 7.d. Form and Date of Most Recent Records or Inventory of Property 

and Addresses where Inventory, Records and Archives are Held 

1) Biodiversity Records 

Inventory of plant or animal species for the Richtersveld and Succulent Karoo 

Biome are kept at the South African National Biodiversity Institute. 

South African National Biodiversity Institute 

Private Bag X101 

Pretoria 0001 

South Africa 

There remain parts of the area which have not been completely researched. 

Research continues through participation from universities and researchers, which 

will be facilitated by the completion of the Rooiberg Research Centre. 

2) World Heritage Site files 

Files pertaining to South Africa’s World Heritage Sites are located at: 


Fedsure Forum Building, North Tower 

Corner of Van der Walt and Pretoria Streets 

Pretoria, South Africa 0001 

3) Cultural and historical artefacts, archives and literature


Cultural artefacts, literature and an inventory of pieces pertaining to the history of 

the Nama, Bosluis Baster and earlier people of the Richtersveld are located at: 

The Eksteenfontein Museum 

Main Road, Eksteenfontein 8384 

South Africa 

McGregor Museum 

Atlas Street Kimberley 

South Africa 8301 

Port Nolloth Museum 

2 Beach Road, Port Nolloth 8280 

South Africa 

Cape Archives 


Roeland Street Cape Town 8000 

South Africa 

Africana Library 

PO Box 627 Kimberley 8300 

South Africa 

4) GIS information 

Geographic information – coordinates of livestock posts, historic kraals, ancient 

Nama gravesites, petroglyphs, symbolic springs and waterpoints – are kept with: 

The Richtersveld Mapping Unit 

120 Main Street 

Eksteenfontein 8384 

South Africa


and with: 

International Knowledge Management 

7 Bishop Road, Observatory 

Cape Town 7925 

South Africa 

5) Administrative files 

Administrative and management files are located at the offices of the Richtersveld 

Community Conservancy: 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

120 Main Street 

Eksteenfontein 8384 

South Africa


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8. Contact Information of Responsible Authorities 

Mr. Ntsizi November 


Private Bag X447, PRETORIA 0001 

South Africa 

Tel: +27-72-678-0396 

E-mail: NNovember@deat.gov.za 

Mr. Andrew Hall 

Department of Sports, Art & Culture 

7th Floor, Du Toitspan Building 

Du Toitspan Road 

Kimberley 8301 

South Africa 

Tel: +27 53 807-4703 (Office) 

+27 82 876 3815 (Cell/Mobile) 

Fax: +27 53 833-1454 

E-mail: ahall@ds.ncape.gov.za 

8.a. Preparer 

Mr. Mark Thornton and Dr. Francois Odendaal 

EcoAfrica Environmental Consultants 

3 Bishop Road, Observatory 

Cape Town, 7925 

South Africa 

Tel: +27-21-448-3778 

Fax: +27-21-447-2614 

E-mail: mark@ecoafrica.co.za or francois@ecoafrica.co.za


8.b. Official Local Institution / Agency 

Management Committee, Richtersveld Community Conservancy 

120 Main Street, Eksteenfontein, 8284 

South Africa 

Tel: +27-27-851-7082 / 7026 

Fax: +27-27-851-7420 

E:mail: Joani@richtersveld.net 

gertlinks@lantic.net 

8.c. Other Local Institutions 

The Eksteenfontein Museum 


South Africa 

McGregor Museum 

Atlas Street Kimberley 

South Africa 8301 

Port Nolloth Museum 

2 Beach Road, Port Nolloth 8280 

Cape Archives 


Roeland Street Cape Town 8000 

Africana Library 

PO Box 627 Kimberley 8300 

Richtersveld Community Conservancy Tourism Information Centre 


South Africa


8.d. Official Web Address 

1. www.richtersveld.net 

Contact name: Joani Cloete 

E-mail: joani@richtersveld.net 

2. www.south-north.co.za 

Contact name: Rean van der Merwe 

E-mail: Rean@ecoafrica.co.za


9. Signature on behalf of the State Party 

SIGNED ________________________________ on behalf of State Party 

FULL NAME: ________________________________ 

TITLE: ________________________________ 

DATE: ________________________________

the richtersveld cultural and botanical landscape - SAHRA

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