South African National Parks (SANParks) has set the ball rolling for the establishment of a joint task team – comprising of state and private entities – to “get a handle on” safety and security in Table Mountain National Park (TMNP).
Two weeks ago, Lauren Howard Clayton, SANParks Regional Communications Manager – Cape Region, told People’s Post that a meeting with the City of Cape Town, as a strategic partner, is on the cards to discuss the possibility of such a task team.
“We will be meeting as soon as all the relevant officials are available,” said Howard Clayton.
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Safety and security on the mountain was arguably the biggest concern raised at a stakeholder engagement held on Tuesday 6 June in Tokai, with more than one stakeholder asking how much money would be set aside to address it.
Responding to stakeholders’ questions, the new CEO of South African National Parks (SANParks), Hapiloe Sello, said with TMNP being an open-access park located on the urban edge, it was very difficult to manage and cover the width and length of the park from a safety and security aspect.
“We have ongoing collaborations with the police and other law enforcement agencies. It is never enough. We do have some vacancies that we need to fill with regards to rangers, which are boots on the ground, but the question is will that be enough.”
Sello said, as partners, they needed to talk realistically about what could and what could not be achieved and in what period of time.
“I wish I could say to you that we have a huge budget sitting somewhere, that we could immediately quadruple the number of rangers, if that is what it would take, on Table Mountain, but we are not there yet. Let’s have more conversations and find practical solutions.”
Some immediate “practical solutions”, she shared, was the relocation of the TMNP’s operations room to bigger premises. Sello added that they were also going to add to the number of tourism monitors.
“And those are funded by the National Department of Tourism; they serve as our eyes and ears on the mountain.”
Following on Sello, SANParks Cape regional general manager Johan Taljaard said that SANParks on its own was never going to win this battle.
“Irrespective of what we throw into it. We cannot do it on our own.”
Taljaard said they had to work with other state (that work with security) and private entities.
“And people like yourselves to be able to get somewhere in getting a handle on this.”
He added that such a partnership needed to be formalised “probably very much the same way as we did with baboon management on the mountain”.
“Get the right groups of people together, including private people.”
The Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Joint Task Team (CPBMJTT), consisting of South African National Parks (SANParks), CapeNature and the City of Cape Town, was established in June last year to discuss, determine and initiate “a more sustainable programme for the management of the Chacma baboon population in the Cape Peninsula”.
As with the CPBMJTT, albeit it different partners, Taljaard said it was necessary to determine what each entity could provide.
“How do we put it together and build something that makes a difference?” he said.
Two such possible collaborations – with Buzzer and MTN – were also mentioned at the stakeholders’ engagement meeting. Should they pan out, both will increase connectivity on the mountain.
Buzzer, a community safety app with roots in Hout Bay, provides a platform that connects residents to local security providers and their communities.
The primary feature of the app is to create an SOS alert for individuals in an emergency situation or for them to create an incident alert around a crisis or emergency situation they may be experiencing.
Howard Clayton said SANParks was busy investigating whether the Buzzer App “can add value”.
“And can link with our operations room as we received a proposal from Buzzer,” she said.
At the meeting, Stephen Floyd, a former TMNP forum chair, questioned if SANParks was aware of an offer by MTN to install additional cellular masts on TMNP “free of charge”.
Floyd said 60% of TMNP currently did not have cellphone coverage.
Repeating this question last week, Howard Clayton said: “There is a call from the public to enhance safety and security on the peninsula by increased coverage from the MTN cell network. We are looking into how we can work with MTN to enhance public safety.”
In December 2021, 104 rangers were in service in TMNP.
This number included the then newly established 18-member Sea, Air and Mountain (SEAM) special operations ranger team.
At the stakeholders meeting it was mentioned that TMNP was going through a restructuring process which might result in more safety and security positions.
Asking for further details, Howard Clayton told People’s Post that TMNP was busy with a human capital realignment process “to better suit operational needs”.
“This will include realigning conservation (including law enforcement) posts, tourism posts and maintenance staff posts. This process will take some time and implementation will start in the second half of the year.”
When the SEAM team was originally launched, the plan was to increase the number of special operations rangers year on year, budget allowing.
Howard Clayton said that there had been no further intake of rangers yet.
She said the SEAM team currently consisted of 17 members and six K9s.
Asked whether there were plans for a 2024 SEAM team programme intake, Howard Clayton said the new intake of SEAM members would commence with the structure realignment in TMNP.
