GENEVA - UN experts* today called on the Government of Tanzania to immediately publish the findings of two presidential commissions examining land-use dynamics and their sustainability and relocation policies in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), amid escalating concerns over the rights and future of Indigenous Peoples.
"We are alarmed that these reports, commissioned in February 2025, remain undisclosed despite government public statements indicating that their recommendations will guide imminent policy decisions," the experts said.
Authorities have publicly signalled plans to significantly reduce human presence in the NCA and expand what is described as a "voluntary" relocation programme, the implementation of which has been criticised by affected persons and civil society.
"These reports are of profound public interest and must be made available to the public without delay," the experts said. "Decisions affecting tens of thousands of Indigenous Peoples cannot be taken behind closed doors."
The commissions were established following large-scale protests in August 2024, during which more than 40,000 Maasai pastoralists mobilised against government efforts to relocate them from their lands. Demonstrations, including the temporary blocking of a key transport route linking Ngorongoro and Serengeti, underscored the depth of local opposition and concern.
The NCA spans over 829,000 hectares and is home to approximately 100,000 people, the majority of whom are Maasai pastoralists. The area is central to their identity and for their cultural practices and ways of life as an Indigenous People. Other Indigenous Peoples, including Datoga pastoralists and Hadzabe hunter-gatherers, also maintain ancestral ties to the land. The area, which includes the Ngorongoro Crater, is a globally significant ecosystem and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2010.
"Conservation efforts must not come at the expense of human rights," the experts said.
"In 1951, the Maasai were assured that they could continue residing in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in exchange for relinquishing lands to establish the Serengeti National Park," the experts said. "These historical commitments to Indigenous Peoples must be honoured and their human rights fully respected."
Since 2022, reports indicate that Indigenous residents have faced increasing pressure to relocate, including by reducing access to essential services, restricting movement, and diminished access to grazing lands, water sources and cultural sites. The experts also received allegations of harassment and intimidation of human rights defenders, arbitrary detention, and risk of forced evictions. Those concerns have been previously raised by Special Procedures (TZA 4/2024, 3/2021, 2/2023).
"In this context, the responsibility of the Government to publish the two reports to ensure transparency in decision-making represents a first step in fulfilling its obligation to ensure the effective participation of all stakeholders in any future process, with a view of securing free, prior and informed consent of all concerned," the experts said.
"Any relocation must be genuinely voluntary, based on full consultation, and consistent with international human rights standards as laid out in the Guiding Principles on Resettlement. Indigenous Peoples have a right to remain on their traditional lands if they so choose. In addition to free, prior and informed consent, any relocation must be based on a genuine public purpose and only after agreement has been reached on just and fair compensation, livelihood support and benefit sharing."
They urged the Government to halt any actions that could lead to forced displacement, and engage in meaningful dialogue with affected communities.
"The protection of biodiversity and the protection of Indigenous Peoples' rights are not mutually exclusive," the experts said. "Sustainable solutions require both."
The experts have been in contact with the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania regarding the matter.
