2017 Huntinamibia
Minister’s Message
Conservation (Trophy) hunting and the sustainable use of our wildlife is a constitutional obligation in Namibia. Our utilisation of wildlife is guided and informed by sustainability and the application of science. In March 2016, the Namibian Cabinet endorsed our position on conservation hunting and called for a collective campaign against attempts to restrict legal trophy hunting and the export of wildlife products from Namibia. To all our trophy hunting clients all over the world, we assure you that our Government is committed to ensure that Namibia will continue to be a place where ethical hunting and fair chase is possible. We are a nation committed to its people, cultures, wildlife and environment.
I have said repeatedly, that banning trophy hunting, which is a significant revenue generator for Namibia and specifically for conservancies, will damage our conservation efforts and destroy the significant successes we have achieved to date. As a developing country we are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and we have to recognise the development needs and poverty eradication priorities as a developing country. It is a proven fact that sustainable utilisation of wildlife and natural resources is fundamentally and inextricably connected to successful wildlife conservation in our country. We cannot achieve sustainable development goals targets without that. To coexist and share the same habitats with wild animals is not an easy living experience. Our communities bear the brunt of excruciating conflict with wild animals daily. Our 82 community conservancies are proud of the fact that they have abundant wildlife. Government has not only translocated wild animals to these areas, but also granted these local communities rights of ownership over those natural resources. Trophy hunting currently adds N$450 million to Namibia’s GDP through the private sector.
All of this is the result of legislation passed 20 years ago to empower local communities to actively manage and use their wildlife. It was done with the aim to encourage wildlife recovery and to restore the environment. This programme has contributed to the growth of e.g. the elephant population from 7,500 in 1995, to 23,000 currently. You may find it interesting that a large percentage of these elephants occurs outside of formal protected areas.
Legal hunting is an integral part of this conservation strategy, which resulted in healthy national populations of giraffe, leopard, lion, crocodile, rhino, buffalo and cheetah. It is also a lifeline for our communities today and we will continue to ensure that they derive maximum benefits through wildlife viewing and hunting safaris, live auctions of wildlife, taxidermy, and the controlled sale and processing of wildlife meat. Our communities are our most important allies in the fight against poaching, in particular against the rhino. In our experience, they will be champions of conservation once they benefit fairly and equitably from conservation and their exceptional knowledge of the natural environment. Although we were not successful to convince CITES to amend the annotation to the listing of the African Elephant in Appendix II in such a way that we would be entitled to trade in ivory in accordance with the provisions of the conventions relating to the trade in Appendix II, we will continue to fight for the right to use the ivory as a valuable resource instead of destroying it.
We invite trophy hunters from all over the world to experience a true African hunting adventure, knowing that it will make a difference to the livelihoods of the people who live and look after wildlife and that your contribution will enable us to protect those wilderness areas for future generations as called for in our constitution.