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In the forests of Cameroon, a single conservation program has seized 1,392 kg of bushmeat, arrested 25 poachers, and destroyed 260 hunting camps, yet hunting pressure resumes whenever enforcement resources are withdrawn. This pattern, repeated across Africa, reveals the fundamental challenge facing wildlife conservation: economic incentives consistently outweigh protection measures when conservation efforts fail to address the underlying livelihood dependencies that drive wildlife exploitation.

Illegal activities that pose significant challenges in most of Africa include habitat loss through charcoal production, illicit harvesting of timber, poaching of wildlife, and overfishing of water resources. In the Lugenda Wildlife Reserve (LUWIRE) within the Niassa Special Reserve of northern Mozambique, these issues are being addressed head-on.

To make chuparosa love charms, the birds are first illegally killed. The methods are not fully known, but available information suggests that slingshots were traditionally used. Currently, they are also dispatched with nets and shotguns, loaded with shells containing tiny pellets. Their bodies are desiccated, usually in eviscerated form. They are then sealed in a paper tube, wrapped in thread, and placed in a bag with a prayer card called an oracione. Contemporary chuparosa charms often also have a Hecho En Mexico (Made in Mexico) sticker attached.

By the 1950s, Nile crocodiles in Zimbabwe were nearly extinct. Commercial hunters had killed most of them for their valuable skins. The crocodiles were easy targets because they lived in predictable locations, hunters could spot them easily at night with spotlights, and each kill was worth a lot of money. Instead of banning all crocodile hunting, wildlife authorities did something unexpected: they allowed people to start commercial crocodile farms. Why did this work? Three reasons: Undercut the black market: Legal farms could supply skins, reducing demand for poached ones.

With the endless challenges facing African governments, such as poverty, inadequate infrastructure, unemployment, and institutional fragility, wildlife conservation is invariably at the bottom of the "to-do list". One of Africa's central paradoxes is that the continent has unparalleled natural wealth, from iconic megafauna to diverse ecosystems, but most nations can't afford to care for it. The brutal math of governance forces difficult choices. Build schools or protect elephants?

Over the past twenty years, the organizations operating in the eastern concession blocks of Niassa Special Reserve, straddling Niassa and Cabo Delgado Provinces, Kambako, Luwire, Chuilexi Conservancy, and Mariri/Niassa Carnivore Project, have made one of the largest and longest-standing investments in conservation and rural development in Mozambique. Together, these organizations protect over 17,842 km² of wilderness in Niassa across eight concessions, supporting wildlife and people across 28 villages with 14,649 residents.

Between 2011 and 2012, caravans of Sudanese poachers decimated Northern Cameroon's elephant population with shocking speed. Where elephants were once a daily sight, all signs of them disappeared entirely. The poachers operated in heavily armed groups of 25 to 30 men, traveling on camels and horses. Whenever Professional Hunter Guav Johnson or his teams discovered their fresh tracks, they had to withdraw from the area to avoid dangerous confrontations. The Sudanese poachers' route was methodical.

The deserts and semi-arid regions of South Africa are home to some of the world's most unique and diverse succulent plant species. But these botanical treasures are vanishing at an alarming rate through poaching. The silent theft of these ancient, slow-growing plants is pushing entire species to the brink of extinction, transforming ecological systems that have evolved over millions of years. SA Hunters and Game Conservation Association (SA Hunters) is traditionally known for its focus on sustainable hunting and wildlife conservation.

One of the key takeaways from the Snare Mitigation Symposium held in Pretoria in September 2024 was the issue of the prosecution and sentencing of snare poachers in South Africa. High-profile cases of rhino horn and elephant ivory trafficking are headline-grabbing, but meat poaching using snares and dogs is probably a more serious issue. The effects of snare poaching are staggering, and while anti-poaching operations are vital, the current laws and enforcement need to be examined.

Northern Cameroon is characterized by flat to gently undulating countryside, with vast plains and occasional rocky outcrops that stretch over a mix of dry and wet savannah landscapes. Large ephemeral rivers create seasonal wetlands and floodplains important for agriculture and wildlife. The northernmost parts of this region are a part of the Sahel, which marks a transition between the desert and the more fertile savannah to the south. The region falls within the Sudano-Sahelian climatic zone, which experiences distinct wet and dry seasons.

The game ranching industry in South Africa in the 1960s was based primarily on venison production and a small amount of photographic tourism. There was very little demand for white rhinos because they were specially protected animals; they couldn’t be safari hunted. Private landowners didn’t want rhinos because they required much capital investment in fencing and security. They were also in competition for food with other wildlife species that could generate income. The rhino was valueless.

In a landmark joint operation, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), supported by the Wildlife Justice Commission has successfully arrested two major wildlife traffickers in Nigeria. These arrests are linked to the significant seizure of 1.58 tonnes of ivory at Lach Huyen International Port, Hai Phong, Vietnam on 27 March 2024. Comprehensive intelligence-led investigations by the Wildlife Justice Commission in response to the Hai Phong seizure led to the identification and location of both the alleged shipper and supplier of the ivory.

Traditional leaders in Kariba district have condemned wildlife poaching in the area, adding that the crime was detrimental to the development of tourism in the district. Kariba's tourism is anchored on wildlife, hence the need for conservation, but despite a significant drop in elephant poaching, the practice was rampant among other smaller animals.

A 34-year-old Harare man has appeared before magistrate Dennis Mangosi charged with illegal possession of ivory. Author Edwin Kowe of Stone Ridge, was arrested on February 19, 2023 after being trapped by detectives from the Police Minerals Flora and Fauna Section who posed as potential buyers. One of the detectives pretended to be an ivory buyer, while the other team carried out surveillance as backup. The detective who was acting as the buyer phoned the accused person and lured him to Waterworks along Chiremba Road.

A Chinese national Wang Yang and his three local accomplices including a police officer stationed in Harare appeared in court on Wednesday charged with illegal possession of rhino horns worth US$600 000.

Two Mutoko men have been jailed nine years each for illegal possession of a pangolin.

Three men travelling through Kadoma will rue the day they caged a pangolin after they were caught in possession of the mammal on Saturday.

The Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (Zela) has called on key stakeholders, including the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), to collaborate in combating illegal trade and smuggling of wildlife products. The call coincided with the World Wildlife Day commemorations held yesterday. Wildlife trafficking in Africa is mainly rife in politically unstable countries and where there is widespread breakdown of law and order.

Zimbabwe has partnered four other states in the Kavango Zambezi (KAZA) Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) in an agreement which will see them joining forces to combat wildlife crime. The four states that will work with Zimbabwe to defend their borders against wildlife threats are Angola, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia.

The courts never cease to disappoint. Two years ago, the Supreme Court delivered a retrogressive judgment on pangolin conservation. A few days ago, the High Court delivered a bombshell on a rhino-related case. The court acquitted a man who was found in possession of four rhino horns in Harare.

Two Bulawayo men have been slapped with a nine-year jail term each for illegal possession of pangolin skins.

A Harare man who, resides at the Presidential Guard Brigade, appeared at the Harare Magistrates Court charged with unlawful possession of a live pangolin.

A plot by a jealous Guruve man to get his ex-wife and her boyfriend imprisoned by planting ivory on her hit a snag after he was arrested for possession of ivory.

Two unemployed Harare men appeared in court last week for illegal possession of ivory.