Mangetti National Park

One of the newly-proclaimed parks in northern Namibia is Mangetti National Park, established in 2008. Mangetti is around 100 km south of town Rundu and 150 km north of Grootfontein. Mangetti Park is 420 sq km in size.

Mangetti is one of a new nature reserves generation and modern parks purposed at reducing rural poverty by tourism development, joint partnership management and income sharing with local rural communities. It is one of Namibia’s newest national parks and has the potential to become a new tourism destination in the north-east of Namibia, while protecting wildlife and vegetation. Mangetti Park has the potential to provide real socio-economic benefits to local communities through tourism development. Opening ceremony took place on 10 October 2014 when the Mangetti Park was officially inaugurated by Minister of Environment and Tourism Uahekua Herunga. The area allocated to Mangetti was previously managed as a game camp (fenced off back in 1973 and 1974) for breeding Namibian rare and endangered species and this land was originally allocated for conservation by the Ukwangali Traditional Authority. Striking natural feature of Mangetti is ancient dunes.

Vegetation

Tree and Shrub Savannah Biome, vegetation type: North-Eastern Kalahari Woodlands. Vegetation on dune crests differs to that in dune valleys. Mangetti tree (Schinziophyton rautanenii), silver terminalia (Terminalia sericea), Commiphora species, variable combretum (Combretum collinum), camel-thorn (Acacia erioloba) and black-thorn acacia (Acacia mellifera). Kalahari woodland vegetation dominates Mangetti’s dune crests while mixed acacia savannah vegetation dominates dune valleys.

Mangetti Wildlife