Visit to Namibia’s latest World Heritage Site in the Namib Desert

Namibia is a country blessed with magnificent scenery, wonderful warm people and a terrific climate. It is also now blessed with two World Heritage sites after the recent UNESCO naming of the Namib Sand Sea as the country’s latest addition to this eminent international grouping and marks its first natural site.

Namibia’s other World Heritage site is at Twyfelfontein , which has one of the largest concentrations of rock engravings in Africa and is also well worth a visit (particularly as the British High Commission has just provided English language training for its Heritage guides).

The Namib Sand Sea is the world’s only desert that includes extensive dune fields influenced by fog. Covering an area of over three million hectares and a buffer zone of 899,500 hectares, the site is composed of two dune systems, an ancient semi-consolidated one overlain by a younger active one.

The Namib Desert therefore boasts a unique environment in which endemic invertebrates, reptiles and mammals adapt to an ever-changing variety of microhabitats and ecological niches.

I was lucky enough to be able to experience this first hand this weekend as a guest at the  Gobabeb Research and Training Centre (GGRTC) open weekend. GRTC is a centre of research excellence situated in the desert, a five-hour drive from Windhoek, in one of the driest places in sub-Saharan Africa (120 km south east of Walvis Bay).Gobabeb put on a really fascinating programme of talks, demonstrations and even a children’s programme, which was very much appreciated by all (a huge thanks to the wonderful Jordan).

Participants were able to learn about the desert’s inscription as a Heritage Site, listen to talks about some of the recent research and educational activities taking place at the centre and enjoy guided walks into the desert.

A big highlight for my entire family was having a chance to see some of the animals that live in the three biomes that surround the centre: the Sand Sea desert, the Kuiseb River bed and the neighbouring gravel plains, including tok tokkie beetles and Namibia’s natural treasure, the golden mole.

Other treats included talks by scientists, such as Dr Simon Elwen (a Research Fellow of the University of Pretoria), who presented on his studies into the behaviour and threatened habitat of a group of about 100 dolphins present around Walvis Bay from his Namibian Dolphin Project.

Dr Joh Henschel talked to some stunning photos of the Sand Sea that clearly illustrated why it was chosen as an area of outstanding natural beauty; and new CEO of Namibia’s Save the Rhino Trust, Marcia Fargnoli, broke up her story on the Great Elder Namib to play to us all on a Native American flute, which helped make the point that we all need to live in harmony with such stunning settings to be able to preserve them and their inhabitants.

The visit was well worth the long drive and provided a fascinating insight to this stunning country and its natural beauty. I thoroughly recommend a visit to Gobabeb if you want to gain a deeper understanding of this unique landscape and learn more about its geology, biology and people. Many thanks to all at the centre who made us feel so welcome and educated us so effectively.

We will be back!