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Nkurenkuru - The Maurus Nekaro Conservancy in the Kavango West region is grappling with significant management challenges that threaten its wildlife conservation mission. Manager of the conservancy Muhepa Matheus said this during discussions between conservancy officials and parliamentary standing committee members specialising in natural resources here last week. Established in 2016 and gazetted in August 2017, the 1 117 square hectare conservancy has achieved notable successes in community development while protecting wildlife resources.

Southern African nations are at it again. Nyasha Chingono reported in late May that those “hosting the largest elephant populations in the world made a fresh pitch…to be allowed to sell their $1bn ivory stockpiles”, purportedly to allocate it towards conservation. How they derive this figure is unclear, and the report doesn’t question its veracity. Current ivory prices are around US$400/kg in illicit markets in the East and averaging about $92/kg across Africa (except for Nigeria which has now become the continent’s major export hub).

It's clear why the illegal wildlife trade exists. Where there's consumer demand for products from endangered species, there are bound to be networks seeking to profit from that demand. But what about the motivations of individual offenders? TRAFFIC, a wildlife trade NGO, decided to simply ask them. The researchers interviewed 73 people in South African correctional centers, who had been convicted of crimes related to rhinos, abalone, or cycads (ancient palm-like plants that have been called "the world's most endangered plants").