This archive of published media articles about wildlife crime in Namibia aims to:
Public access to information is a vital component of ensuring community engagement in prevalent issues. Wildlife crime is one of the pressing environmental issues of our time.
Wildlife crime investigations are generally covert operations requiring utmost confidentiality to succeed. Investigations and prosecutions in complex cases may take months or even years to complete. For this reason, the information that can be released to the public without compromising cases is often limited. Nonetheless, the Namibian government strives to share as much information as possible with the public.
The Namibian media has welcomed this approach and regularly publishes statistics and feature articles on wildlife crime. These are entered into the database at regular intervals, creating a comprehensive archive of wildlife crime reporting in Namibia.
Explore your search results using the filter checkboxes, or amend your search or start a new search.
The jackal buzzard is a fairly large African bird of prey and the Harris's Hawk - native to the Americas - is a standout with bold dark brown, chestnut red, and white markings, long yellow legs, and yellow markings on its face. An appeal has been made to the public for any information related to the theft of the four missing birds. Centre manager James Wittstock said they hoped the birds were still alive and safe. This is the first time birds have been stolen from the Centre. There was no way they could have escaped from their enclosure.
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
SA_2024_08_Appeal for return of stolen birds_Independent Online.pdf | 147.36 KB |
South Africa recorded 229 rhinos poached in the first half of 2024, a slight decline from the same period last year, and the government said global cooperation is essential to save the rare animals. Poaching poses the biggest threat to the rhino population in South Africa where at least one rhino is killed for their horns every day. Rhino horns - made primarily of keratin, a protein also found in human hair and fingernails - are prized in some East Asian countries for traditional medicine and jewellery.
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
SA_2024_08_Drop in South Africas rhino poaching linked to dehorning programmes_Reuters.pdf | 248.3 KB |
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
UG_2024_07_Is Ugandas Wildlife Court a paper tiger_newvision.pdf | 665.15 KB |
Durban - South African conservation NGO, the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), has introduced a novel project that seeks to test the use of restorative justice approaches to wildlife crimes - a first for the country. In South Africa, it is an offence to undertake any prohibited or unauthorised activity in respect of any legally protected species.
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
SA_2023_11_Restorative justice approaches to wildlife crimes_IOL.pdf | 157.82 KB |
The Standards, Utilities and Wildlife Court at the Buganda Road in Kampala has sentenced two men to five years in jail over illegal possession of ivory. Chief Magistrate Gladys Kamasanyu sentenced Robert Ecat and Charles Kanyenya to five years or a fine of shillings five million after they pleaded guilty to illegally possessing ivory weighing 10.65kg.
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
UGA_2023_08_Uganda_Two jailed over illegal possession of ivory_Journal of African Elephants.pdf | 164.75 KB |
The Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (Zela) has called on key stakeholders, including the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), to collaborate in combating illegal trade and smuggling of wildlife products. The call coincided with the World Wildlife Day commemorations held yesterday. Wildlife trafficking in Africa is mainly rife in politically unstable countries and where there is widespread breakdown of law and order.
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
ZIM_2022_03_Need for collaborative efforts in combating illicit wildlife trade_Activists_NewsDay.pdf | 529.42 KB |
Cape Town - The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries has joined the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation in welcoming the sentencing of a 49-year-old man for the illegal possession and transportation of abalone valued at R2.4 million. Moegamat Amien Fakier was sentenced to a fine of R50 000 or two years' imprisonment when he appeared in the Khayelitsha Priority Court on Thursday last week.
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
SA_2021_05_Abalone poacher fined R50 000 for R2_4 million haul_IOL.pdf | 983.63 KB |
Cape Town - CapeNature says it has noted a worrying spike in the theft of indigenous plants in the province. It said it has begun to notice that crimes relating to the theft of endangered indigenous plants in the province had begun to steadily increase, even under strict Covid-19 restrictions. CapeNature spokesperson Petro van Rhyn said while there were several reasons why the illegal trade had picked up recently, the most notable reasons pointed to the huge demand by plant collectors to own the naturally occurring plants, native to South Africa and…
Attachment | Size |
---|---|
SA_2021_05_Collectors drive a spike in theft of indigenous plants in the Western Cape_IOL.pdf | 153.37 KB |