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The unprecedented onslaught against South African succulents now includes beautiful and rare clivias, which are being illegally harvested to extinction to supply markets abroad. In 2023, the ENACT organised crime project outlined the global illegal trade in southern Africa’s succulent flora, and suggested ways to strengthen implementation of South Africa's National Response Strategy and Action Plan. In September 2024, guided by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), stakeholders met to consider progress, using ENACT's recommendations as a benchmark.

It could have been the proverbial pot of gold. Instead, it became at best, an opportunity lost in the fight against transnational organized wildlife crime. On February 2, a Nairobi area court acquitted Hoang Thi Diu, a female of apparent Vietnamese/Chinese dual citizenship, of charges relating to the dealing and possession of 145 kilograms of ivory, rhino horn, lion's teeth, and claws. Objectively, and considering the evidence before the court, the verdict was not incorrect.

As two collectors walk down the South Korean nursery's humid aisles, they spot a magnificent specimen. Having collected South African succulents for over two decades, their greenhouse showcases many plants growing in what looks like their natural Succulent Karoo habitat. But they have never seen this species before, and judging from its size, the plant looks decades old. The nursery owner tells them the succulent is a new mother plant used for cultivation and is not for sale. But if they wanted an equally large plant, he could connect them to his broker.

There are worrying signs that the illegal trade is becoming more organised, with professionals and government officials involved.

It was a mistake. Ten tons of ivory and 190 kilograms of rhino horn were sold over a seven-year period, according to the indictment. It was actually much more than that. Much, much more. Moazu Kromah, a Liberian national, had pled guilty in March to three charges relating to wildlife trafficking in Africa. In his letter pleading for leniency submitted to the Southern District of New York, he thanked the court for the opportunity to "give some information about myself and the circumstances that led me to make the mistakes which bring me before you."

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, World Rhino Day will be marked with a talent show virtual event this year. "Even though Covid-19 is keeping us from our usual celebrations, this year we hope we can get as many people as possible from here in Namibia and around the world to show their pride and talent by joining us in a virtual campaign," said Clemens Naomab, regional project coordinator for the Namibia Nature Foundation (NNF), on Saturday. World Rhino Day is an international event, recognised by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN),…

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism in collaboration with the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF) has translocated 30 giraffes to two communal conservancies and a national park. The translocation, which took place last week, is part of the ministry's quest to boost the existing population and increase its genetic diversity.

Four police officers arrested for allegedly poaching springbok in a conservancy in the Erongo Region appeared in the Khorixas Magistrate's   Court yesterday morning and were granted bail of N$300 each.