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Rhino poaching rates in Africa declined to 2.3% in 2021 from 3.9% of the population in 2018. This is according to a new report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the global non-governmental organisation Traffic. The report was compiled for the 19th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which will be held in Panama in November.

Last week, five white rhinos were poached on private farms, bringing 2022's total to 39, of which 15 were white rhinos.

A farmer shot and wounded a suspected poacher in the leg at farm Kaliombo in the Karibib district on Sunday. It is alleged the farmer acted in self-defence, after a group of alleged poachers attempted to attack him after he discovered them on his farm. According to a crime update provided by the Namibian police, the farm owner (65) was alerted to possible intruders (65) when he heard dogs barking on Sunday at about 23:45. He was also notified about suspected poachers on his farm by security guards from K-Sapu Security and Anti-Poaching.

Eight months into the year and already 36 rhinos have been poached across the country. In the latest incidents, the carcass of a white rhino was discovered yesterday on a private farm in the Okahandja district. On Monday, the carcasses of two more white rhinos - killed by poachers - were discovered on a private farm in the Outjo district. Just last week, the ministry said 33 rhinos had been poached this year, of which 24 were black rhinos and nine were white rhinos.

South Africa last week announced that the number of rhinos poached during 2015 had gone down from the 1 215 record total in 2014 to 1 175 in 2015. The wildlife trade monitoring network, TRAFFIC’s Director of Policy Sabri Zain said in a statement that although there was a slight decrease in rhino poaching in South Africa and the authorities are having some impact on the ground, the numbers are hardly cause for celebration or complacency.

The Minister of Environment and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, was in the Etosha National Park last week and unearthed a range of irregularities. He says the park regulations are not being obeyed. Shifeta stressed that action will be taken against those who do not comply with the rules of the park, but that this action will depend on what rules are broken. He said it is a privilege for anyone to visit or stay at Etosha and the park must be respected. "It is our national heritage."

The Namibian community reeled when the executive director of Namrights Phil ya Nangoloh made public that high-level officials and politicians were involved in the scourge of rhino poaching in the country. The public demanded to know the names, saying that if it is indeed so, wealthy Namibians, part of the so-called elite, are plundering the natural resources of the country.