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Namibian Wildlife Crimes article archive

This archive of published media articles about wildlife crime in Namibia aims to:

  • provide easy public access to published information and statistics
  • enable easy stakeholder access to articles
  • provide a comprehensive archive of wildlife crime reporting in Namibia

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.

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Displaying results 1 - 6 of 6
Tuesday, 31 January 2023
Wright G 2023. Namibia reports record level of rhino poaching.

The number of endangered rhinos poached in Namibia last year was the highest on record and almost twice as many as the year before, officials say. A total of 87 rhinos were killed compared with 45 in 2021, official government data show. Most were poached in Etosha, Namibia's biggest national park, officials say.

Friday, 13 January 2023
Kuiper T, Milner-Gulland EJ Elephant poaching rates vary across Africa: 19 years of data from 64 sites suggest why.

t's a grim and all too common sight for rangers at some of Africa’s nature reserves: the bullet-riddled carcass of an elephant, its tusks removed by poachers. African elephant populations have fallen by about 30% since 2006. Poaching has driven the decline. Some reserves, like Garamba in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Selous in Tanzania, have lost hundreds of elephants to poachers over the last decade. But others, like Etosha National Park in Namibia, have been targeted far less.

Wednesday, 14 July 2021
Muvundisi J 2021. Ivory suspect shifts blame to co-accused.

A Bulawayo man, who was arrested together with two other men for illegally dealing in ivory, has shifted the blame to his co-accused, claiming the tusks belonged to the duo.

Thursday, 17 June 2021
Taylor L 2021. Tanzania's "Ivory Queen" denied release after appeal.

One of the world's most infamous ivory traffickers will remain in prison in Tanzania after an appeal judge sent her case back to a lower court. The high court accepted there were anomalies in the original written judgment against Yang Fenglan, but declined her attorney's application for her release. Between 2009 and 2014, poachers reduced Tanzania’s elephant population by 60%, according to a government census. In response, Tanzania developed a strategy of intelligence-led investigations.

Thursday, 17 June 2021
Taylor L 2021. Poaching declines in Tanzania following prosecution of ivory trafficking ringleaders.

Once known as the world's elephant killing fields, Tanzania appears to have halted the worst ivory poaching within its borders, making more than 2,300 arrests of poachers and traffickers over five years.

Saturday, 3 April 2021
Muvundisi J 2021. Worry over increased poaching of painted dogs.

Painted dogs, also known as wild dogs, face extinction as a result of increased illegal hunting by poachers, a conservation centre has revealed. The Painted Dogs Conservation Centre in Dete, which is located at the foot of the Hwange National Park, said snares set up by poachers, mostly villagers, have become a huge threat to the population of painted dogs.

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