[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16749-16750]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                      A TRIBUTE TO HENRI NSANJAMA

 Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, today I rise to pay tribute to 
Henri Nsanjama, a champion of conservation who died on July 18, 2000. 
At the time of his death, Mr. Nsanjama was serving as vice president 
and senior advisor on Africa and Madagascar for the World Wildlife Fund 
here in Washington. Henri was an ardent supporter of measures to 
protect Africa's elephants and of the United Nations Convention to 
Combat Desertification. I worked with him on both of these important 
issues. Henri would have been pleased to know that the Senate Foreign 
Relations Committee is scheduled to vote in September to recommend that 
the full Senate ratify the Desertification Convention. So far, 168 
countries have ratified the Desertification Convention and the U.S. is 
the only major industrial nation that has not done so. Henri worked 
hard to change that and ensure that biodiversity is protected in Africa 
and other parts of the world facing desertification.
  A native of Malawi, Henri dedicated his life to the challenge of 
linking wildlife conservation with the needs of local communities. He 
believed that the most challenging aspect of his work was conserving 
wildlife without undue hardship to human beings.
  Henri built his distinguished career through formal education and 
hands-on field work. He served as a Trainee Game Ranger in his native 
Malawi, where he recalled being inspired by the

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sight of more wild animals than people. He attended the College of 
African Wildlife Management in Mweka, Tanzania, and became a Warden at 
Kasungu National Park in Central Malawi.
  Henri then moved to the United States, and earned a Bachelor's Degree 
in wildlife biology and natural resources economics at the University 
of Massachusetts at Amherst. After Amherst, Henri returned home to 
Kasungu National Park and eventually was hired as Malawi's Deputy 
Director of National Parks and Wildlife. Three years later, he attended 
the University of Stirling, Scotland, where he received a Master's 
Degree in environmental management.
  Anxious to apply his new knowledge, Henri returned home once again to 
become the Director of National Parks and Wildlife for Malawi. He also 
served as the Coordinator of Wildlife Activities of the ten countries 
of the Southern African Development Coordination.
  In 1989, Henri was nominated Chairman of the Standing Committee of 
the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, a post he 
held for a year before beginning work with WWF in 1990. Henri led WWF's 
program in Africa for 10 years. During that time he focused in 
particular on the areas of building the capacity of people and 
institutions to manage natural resources, community based natural 
resources management, protected areas management and species 
conservation. He was co-author of ``Voices from Africa: Local 
Perspectives on Conservation.''
  A strong African voice for conservation, Henri also knew how to reach 
Americans. About Henri, Kathryn Fuller, President of WWF, said, 
``Throughout his 10 years with WWF, Henri was an inspirational 
ambassador for conservation with the American public and our partners 
in Africa. He was also at the forefront of efforts to include women in 
conservation and increase their educational opportunities.''
  Beyond his professional accomplishments, Henri is remembered as a 
gifted storyteller who touched the lives of everyone he encountered. In 
a profile five years ago, he was asked to describe his idea of perfect 
happiness. He answered, ``As a Christian, it's believing in what good 
was given to you and to be able to do good things for others. This is 
my 19th year of working in conservation. I've never done anything else 
and I never want to.''
  In Henri's honor, the World Wildlife Fund will establish a fund to 
ensure that Africans are given the opportunity to care for and manage 
their natural resources, a fitting tribute for one who believed so 
strongly in the importance of empowering Africa's people to sustainably 
manage their natural heritage.
  Henri's funeral in Malawi this week was attended by 3,000 people, 
including eight ministers of the Malawian government. He was clearly 
loved and respected by many and has left a lasting legacy of 
sustainable management of wildlife and wildlands in Africa. For this we 
should all be enormously grateful.

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