African nations create giant game park

PRETORIA, South Africa, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Mozambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa have opened the borders between parks in all three countries to create the largest transnational game park in Africa.

The Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, which is expected to eventually grow to cover 16,000 square miles, combines South Africa's Kruger National Park, Mozambique's Limpopo National Park and Zimbabwe's Gonarezhou National Park, The Times of London reported Thursday.

The presidents of all three countries gathered to witness the opening of the Giriyondo border between the Kruger and Limpopo parks.

"The Giriyondo access facility ... is just the beginning of a new era when we will bring down the colonial fences which divided our nations over several centuries," said South African President Thabo Mbeki. "Today, we take yet another step to free ourselves from the chains of our past and open up to our peoples and wild animals the spaces of freedom as nature has intended."

Mbeki said he expects the park to be a major tourist attraction when South Africa is the site of the World Cup in 2010.