5TH INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE RANCHING SYMPOSIUM WILD EXPO CIC TROPICAL GAME COMMISSION CONFERENCE  This International Wildlife Ranching Symposium is the fifth in a series; it follows on the successful symposia held in Mexico, Canada, South Africa and Canada in previous years. The Symposium will be preceded on Monday, 19 March 2001 by a Conference organised by the CIC Tropical Game Commission. The Symposium itself starts on Tuesday, 20 March and runs through to Friday, 23 March. The WILD EXPO starts on Wednesday, 21 March, which is a public holiday, and runs through to Saturday, 24 March. All of these events take place at THE PRETORIA INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION CENTRE. The South African Game Ranchers' Organisation (SAGRO) is the body responsible for the maintenance and extension of the game ranching industry, in particular its infrastructural, legal and organisational needs, and liaison with government institutions. It also promotes research and market development and, in this instance, international contact. Various relevant associations, societies, universities and other agencies are participating in the programme. On government level, the Departments of Agriculture and of Environmental Affairs and Tourism are involved in a supportive role. The Symposium will provide opportunities of examining the theory and practice of game ranching on a continent where this is a major and growing sector of both First and Third World economies and of drawing upon the world-wide experience in the functioning and management of biotically diverse ecosystems, including highly sensitive, very arid and very moist ecosystems. SUSTAINABLE UTILISATION - CONSERVATION IN PRACTICE In many countries, and certainly in Africa, the priorities of government spending are directed at combating poverty and providing food, education and jobs. We need not destroy the wild to accommodate the needs of humanity, but through sustainable utilisation by the wildlife industry, nature conservation will be able to survive. South Africa shares in the wealth of animal species present in Africa and has a proud record of maintaining it. read more at http://www.wildliferanching.com/