NGO response to proposals from Namibia and Zimbabwe to Cull Elephants and other Wildlife 

Oct 24, 2024 | Press Releases

23 October 2024 – The undersigned organisations are deeply concerned by the announcements by some governments in southern Africa to cull large numbers of elephants and other wild animals, including in National Parks. 

In late August 2024, Namibia declared it would kill 723 wild animals, including 83 elephants1, and later increased this number to 1002. Shortly afterwards, Zimbabwe announced its intention to kill at least 200 elephants.3 

The justifications given for these threats include a combination of providing meat to drought-stricken citizens, reducing pressure on land and water resources, mitigating human-elephant conflict, and reducing alleged wildlife over-population. 

However, while we acknowledge the severity of one of the worst droughts in decades in southern Africa, the killing of large numbers of wild animals cannot be justified for the following reasons: 

(1) Culling fragile wildlife populations to feed people is not sustainable and cannot provide food security to millions of people requiring food assistance during a prolonged drought. The distribution of game meat also generates a demand that cannot be met sustainably in the long term, thereby potentially fueling poaching and illegal trade. 

(2) Culling does not resolve human-wildlife conflict. Rather, it further threatens fragile wildlife populations, fractures the social structure and stability of wildlife populations (e.g. of elephants4 5), traumatizes surviving animals, and can lead to aggression towards humans thereby increasing future conflict. 

(3) The slaughter of elephants results in the stockpiling of tusks, increasing the pressures to undermine international bans on ivory trade and open up ivory markets. We are concerned that Namibia and Zimbabwe have been at the forefront of efforts to reverse the international ban on ivory trade in order to generate income. This would inevitably fuel demand and increase poaching pressure with devastating consequences for remaining elephants across their entire range. 

(4) Killing wild animals that are the basis for the tourism economy would threaten sustainable livelihoods. In Zimbabwe, tourism is the third largest economic sector6 and contributed US$ 433 million to the country`s GDP7. This industry is heavily reliant on healthy wildlife populations and intact protected areas and could suffer significantly from the culling of wild animals. 

(5) The move to cull elephants is a major policy reversal. It was carried out in Zimbabwe and South Africa between the mid-1960s and the mid-1990s but was abandoned after heavy criticism because of the cruelty and trauma inflicted on these highly intelligent and social animals. 

(6) African savanna elephants are categorized as Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Their populations have declined by at least 60% across the continent over the last 50 years.8 While southern Africa has been less affected by these declines and is home to the largest populations of savannah elephants, claims of recent population growth and over-population have no scientific basis. Recent studies show that the populations in southern Africa have remained largely unchanged since 2014.9 10 

We are concerned that the proposed culls may ultimately serve the interests of those who stand to benefit from the commercial exploitation of threatened wildlife populations. 

A number of experts and organisations based in southern Africa have publicly expressed concerns regarding the proposals, including the Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) in Zimbabwe11, the Zambia-based organisation African Rivers12, and the South Africa-based Pro Elephant Network13. 

The current drought affecting parts of southern Africa is devastating for both people and wildlife. Nevertheless, the governments of the countries concerned are not devoid of resources to implement effective measures to address the problem and should use the drought as an opportunity to employ stronger land governance and prioritise sustainable agricultural production among smallholder farmers in rural areas. 

We note that experts have suggested a number of rational and sustainable alternatives to address the effects of the drought, most importantly the provision of staple food such as grain to ensure food security.14 15 Also, a wide range of measures and policies are available that have been proven to be effective in preventing and solving human-wildlife conflict without resorting to the indiscriminate killing of wild animals.16 17These measures should be explored and implemented before any lethal interventions are considered. 

We call on the governments of the countries concerned to withdraw plans to cull elephants and other wildlife, and instead to use their available resources to implement existing, well-proven alternative, sustainable and humane measures to tackle the current challenges facing both people and wildlife. 

We also call on donor governments and agencies to link the provision of aid to the implementation of effective and sustainable measures to ensure food security and human-wildlife coexistence, while also protecting increasingly threatened wildlife populations. 

Signatories 

Action for Elephants 

African Climate Alliance 

Africa Conservancy Foundation 

AllRise Attorneys for Climate and Environmental Justice 

Amboseli Trust for Elephants 

Ancient Earth Farm 

Animal Alliance of Canada 

Animal Asia 

Animal Defenders International 

Animal Defense Partnership 

Animal Talk Africa 

Animal Welfare Institute 

Bambelela Wildlife Care NPC 

Ban Animal Trading 

Beauty Without Cruelty 

Betty’s Bay Baboon Action Group 

Bob Jacobs, Colorado College 

Born Free Foundation 

Born Free USA 

CATCA Environmental and Wildlife Society 

Centre for Animal Rehabilitation and Education 

Center for Biological Diversity 

Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) 

COMARINO, Conservacion de Mamíferos Marinos de México 

Community Led Animal Welfare 

Communications Climate Justice Charter Movement 

Conservation Justice 

Co-Operative and Policy Alternative Centre 

David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation 

DolphinCareAfrica t/a DolphinEncountours.Org 

Dzomo La Mupo 

EAGLE, Eco Activists for Governance & Law Enforcement 

East Caribbean Coalition for Environmental Awareness 

Ecoflix 

Elephant Reintegration Trust 

ElephantVoices 

EMS Foundation 

Fondation Franz Weber 

Free Bunka 

Future for Elephants 

Future for Wildlife 

Gifted for Good 

Global White Lion Protection Trust 

Good Governance Africa 

Green Group Simonstown 

Ian Redmond OBE, Wildlife Biologist 

International Elephant Project 

Institute for Critical Animal Studies 

Kogelberg Villages Environmental Trustees 

LAGA, Wildlife Law Enforcement 

Law of the Wild 

Lawrence Anthony Earth Organization 

Mizu Ecocare 

Monkey Helpline 

Moses Litoroh, Elephant Conservationist, Kenya 

Mutare SPCA 

Ocean Not Oil 

OSCAP 

Panthera Africa Big Cat Sanctuary 

Peace4Animals 

Pro Wildlife 

Rettet die Elefanten Afrikas 

Rhinos in Africa 

Robin des Bois 

Ross Harvey, Director of Harvey Economics Pty Ltd, South Africa 

Sauvez les Elephants 

Save African Rhino Foundation 

Save the Asian Elephants 

Sharon Pincott, Elephant Behavioural Specialist, Author of “Elephant Dawn”, Hwange, Zimbabwe 

South African Faith Communities Environmental Institute 

Southern African Fight for Rhinos 

TerraMar Research 

The Corbett Foundation 

Vervet Monkey Foundation 

Voices for Asian Elephants 

Voice4Lions 

Wild Africa Fund Southern Africa 

Wild Law Institute 

World Animal News 

Zimbabwe Elephant Foundation 

Zoocheck 

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