The use of park and veterinary fences to separate wildlife, people and livestock is increasingly threatening greater fragmentation of African rangelands. However, the curtailment and eradication of wildlife borne animal diseases has necessitated the use of fencing as a blunt instrument. The dilemma inherent in the removal of fences to make way for large contiguous transfrontier conservation areas is that wildlife reservoir disease vectors may spread and cause hardship to rural communities and harm national livestock exports. New and creative thinking is required to balance these opposite outcomes so an era that will encourage the sustainable development of African rangelands can be ushered in.