Wildlife officials to visit Kenyan parks

“We want the officials to open their eyes and ears. Kenya’s national parks are a world model for national park management. They should visit this place at least once in their lifetime,” Damrong Phitdej, director-general of the department, said yesterday.
The 300 officials, including 16 chief wardens of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, will separate into five groups of 60 each. The Bt25-million budget, approved by the department on March 30, is coming from national park admission fees.
A consulting company has also been hired to take care of the participants during the whole trip.
Damrong has already led a group of 10 officials including his deputy Rerngchai Prayoonvej on a similar study trip to Kenya.
The department annually reserves 15 per cent of its income from collecting national park fees to support communities around national parks and to maintain national parks.
Some of this budget will support its officials in going abroad to learn about the management of national parks in other counties, like Tanzania, whose Kilimanjaro National Park boasts the highest mountain in Africa.
“Personally I think it’s good for operating staff to have a chance to open their eyes and see what other countries like Kenya have done to manage national parks. This trip will be an inspiration for them to work hard and improve our national parks,” said Theerapat Prayoonsit, deputy director-general of the department.
The department earns Bt300 million-Bt500 million a year from national park fees. Last year, it took in Bt496 million.