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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 - 10 of 10
Tuesday, 19 December 2023
Surge in pangolin trafficking worrisome - Ministry.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism has noticed a concerning uptick in arrests associated with pangolin trafficking between 1 September and 30 November, prompting a mixture of relief and deep concern among authorities. Romeo Muyunda, the ministerial spokesperson, conveyed in a statement that while the rise in apprehensions signifies progress in combating the illicit trade, it also signifies a troubling escalation in crimes linked to pangolins.

Tuesday, 18 July 2023
2023. More needs to be done to protect wildlife - National Report on Wildlife Protection and Law Enforcement.

The country's anti-poaching and crime prevention initiatives managed to arrest 75 suspects in 106 cases related to rhino poaching in Namibia in 2022, a report released last week noted. The year 2022 saw the most rhinos poached in the country since 2015 when the first major poaching wave in independent Namibia peaked, the National Report on Wildlife Protection and Law Enforcement in Namibia revealed. The released report is based on data compiled via the Integrated Database of Wildlife Crime in Namibia, as well as related firsthand information and observations by…

Thursday, 1 September 2022
2022. The war against rhino poachers intensified.

The 2022 poaching statistics show a loss of 210 rhino on state properties and 49 in privately owned parks. As indicated, hardest hit during this period is KwaZulu-Natal which recorded a loss of 133 rhino. This is more than triple the 33 rhino killed in the first six months of 2021.

Wednesday, 15 September 2021
Pretorius N 2021. Rhino cow and her calf killed by poachers.

A well-known rhino pair were poached at the Bothongo Rhino and Lion Nature reserve early Wednesday morning. A rhino cow and her calf needlessly lost their lives when they were poached in the Bothongo Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve in the Cradle of Humankind in the early hours of Wednesday, September 15.

Thursday, 29 April 2021
Pretorius N 2021. Two imprisoned for attempting to sell injured pangolin.

Two men recently received a seven-year prison sentence each after they were found guilty on charges of trying to sell an injured pangolin.

Friday, 4 September 2020
Chingwere M 2020. Two suspected poachers killed in raid.

Two armed poachers were shot dead at Chirisa Game Park in Gokwe over the weekend in a gun combat with Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) rangers. ZimParks is now using drones to patrol its vast estate, and so far this year, 800 poachers have been detected and more than 600 arrested by follow-up patrols.

Tuesday, 25 August 2020
Maponga G 2020. Poachers poison park lions.

Three carcasses of lions were recently recovered in the wildlife-rich Gonarezhou National Park, south-east of the Lowveld amid fears that poachers from Mozambique were using cyanide to poison animals.

Monday, 17 August 2020
2020. Drones improve sniffing out poachers.

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) has started using drones to detect poachers as part of improved and technology-based conservation strategies.

Monday, 3 August 2020
2020. Poachers kill two rhinos.

Two black rhinoceroses, whose carcasses were recently found by game scouts in Bubye Valley Conservancy, have been killed by poachers, police have confirmed.

Friday, 12 June 2020
2020. Zimbabwe - fruit laced with cyanide found at Victoria Falls.

Forestry Commission officials in Victoria Falls last week recovered oranges, cucumbers and amarula fruits in a plastic bag laced with cyanide poison. It is suspected that some poachers left them hanging on a tree in a bid to kill elephants in the forest. National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the incident.

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