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.
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The Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, provided a detailed overview of ongoing efforts in wildlife protection and law enforcement at the 2024 Annual National Stakeholder Forum held this week. According to Shifeta, Namibia has long been recognized for its successful conservation strategies, which have significantly reduced poaching rates since the late 1980s and early 1990s, particularly targeting iconic species such as rhinos and elephants.
Chief of the Namibian Police, Lieutenant General Joseph Shikongo confirmed a deadly encounter between poachers and members of the anti-poaching operation in Etosha National Park. According to Shikongo, the incident occurred on 1 May between 12:00 and 13:00 at Scorpionbelt – Western Zone within the confines of the park. While conducting patrols alongside the park's fence, members of the poaching unit spotted shoeprints indicating the illegal entry of individuals into the park.
In less than eight years, white sharks in South Africa have all but disappeared from their historical hotspots in False Bay and Gansbaai, on the Western Cape coast. These areas were once known as the "white shark capital of the world" and were home to a flourishing ecotourism industry. One possible explanation for this change would be a declining white shark population. We are part of an international research team with expertise in shark ecology, genetics, fisheries and conservation, researching sharks for more than 20 years.
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.
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NAM_2023_12_Surge in pangolin trafficking worrisome_Namibian Economist.pdf | 204.69 KB |
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…
Kenya will enhance partnerships with neighboring countries and regional blocs in a bid to protect abundant natural resources like wildlife from the clutches of organized crime, an official has said.
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KEN_2023_-07_Kenya vows to combat illegal trade in iconic species via enhanced partnership_NewsGhana.pdf | 528.08 KB |
There is a R100 000 reward that is up for grabs for information leading to the poachers of two rhinos at Sibuya Game Reserve. Their carcasses were only found on Thursday. At least 14 other rhinos have been killed in the Eastern Cape since December, leading to suspicion that a single syndicate may be responsible for the attacks. The reward has been posted by the Buffalo Kloof Game Reserve, in nearby Makhanda, whose owner, Warne Rippon, said he hoped it would help bring the perpetrators to justice.
Tanzanian wildlife authorities on Saturday warned poachers to stop the malpractice before they faced the full force of the law.
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TAN_2022_07_Tanzania warns poachers to stop malpractice_News Ghana.pdf | 160.19 KB |
Germany on Tuesday granted Tanzania 71 million Euros (about 82.3 million U.S. dollars) for financing various projects, including those initiated to fight poaching and prevent human-wildlife conflicts. An agreement to the grant was signed in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam by Tanzania’s deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Planning, Amina Shaaban, and Marcus von Essen, head of the East Africa Division in the Federal German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
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TAN_2021_10_Tanzania gets grant for projects of fighting poaching improving water access_News Ghana.pdf | 154.87 KB |
An elephant was shot and killed at a farm in the Ndiyona Constituency in the Kavango East Region last Wednesday, the police said. The Namibian Police crime investigations coordinator in the region, Deputy Commissioner Bonifatius Kanyetu, told Nampa on Tuesday they found the carcass of an elephant at the farm in the Ndiyona Constituency.
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NAM_2020-05_Elephant illegally killed at Ndiyona_NAMPA.pdf | 285.71 KB |
South Africa is escalating the fight against poaching using different means and collaborating with other countries in the midst of increased activity by illegal hunters, said South African National Parks (SANParks) on Tuesday.
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SA_2020-02_South African national parks declare war on poachers.pdf | 115.2 KB |