[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 115 (Thursday, September 4, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1658-E1659]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      FOREIGN OPERATIONS, EXPORT FINANCING, AND RELATED PROGRAMS 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1998

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                             HON. JIM KOLBE

                               of arizona

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 3, 1997

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2159) making 
     appropriations for foreign operations, export financing, and 
     related programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 
     1998, and for other purposes:


  Mr. KOLBE. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong opposition to the Fox 
amendment, In a misguided attempt to save the African elephant, the Fox 
amendment would cut funding for the Communal Areas Management Program 
for Indigenous Resources [CAMPFIRE]. Such a move would be disastrous.
  I recently returned from a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe, where 
myself and several of my colleagues witnessed the CAMPFIRE Program 
first hand. What we found was a program based on sound economic, 
scientific, and environmental principles. We found a program which 
works.
  The CAMPFIRE Program uses free market principles to promote the 
conservation of Africa's valuable and irreplaceable natural resources. 
By providing economic incentives for the conservation of wildlife, 
CAMPFIRE has instilled a sense of national ownership over their natural 
resources into the people of Zimbabwe. Rather than viewing the African 
elephant as a menace, the people of Zimbabwe we now see the elephant as 
a natural treasure to be preserved. As a result, the

[[Page E1659]]

illegal hunting of the African elephant in Zimbabwe has virtually 
stopped.
  One only has to look at the number of elephants thriving in Zimbabwe 
today to know that this program works. From 1980, the elephant 
population in Zimbabwe has increased from 45,000 to 66,000. And it 
continues to grow at an estimated rate of 3,000 per year. Contrast this 
with Kenya, where alternative policies have resulted in a massive drop 
in the elephant population, falling from 100,000 in 1970 to 26,000 
today.
  The CAMPFIRE Program also helps to bring the poorest of the poor 
much-needed capital to develop their village resources. The money 
earned through CAMPFIRE enables these villages to erect schools, dig 
clean-water wells, and develop training programs. It is a model for 
sustainable economic development and environmental conservation. I urge 
my colleagues to support this program. I urge my colleagues to vote 
``no'' on the Fox amendment.

                          ____________________