Huntinamibia Huntinamibia 2020 (English)

Yes, you are absolutely right! The photograph on the cover of this 21st edition of Huntinamibia is NOT of the 100-pounder that Koos Pienaar found for his client in Bwabwata West. Every hunting guide and hunter will tell you that if and when you encounter such a big tusker there is no time for photographs. We tried our best to find a photograph that will do justice to the area, the age of the elephant and the tusks. PH Dirk de Bot, who is a well-known, published photographer, shared a few which we added to the story about that hunt. Dirk was in the news a few years ago when his client took an 86-pounder with Koos Pienaar in the same area, in the hunting fraternity better known as the…

Namibia has adopted a number of innovative strategies to achieve biodiversity conservation within the framework of national development plans and poverty eradication. One of the strategies is the Community-based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) Programme, which allows for the formation of communal conservancies through which rural communities have gained rights over management of wildlife and tourism. The CBNRM programme provides a number of incentives to rural communities who are managing these natural resources and generate income from the sustainable utilisation of wildlife and tourism management. The Namibian conservation model, which has received international acclaim, is based on the premise that people living with wildlife are the rightful custodians. Our legislation and policies thus provide for rural communities and private landowners to manage their wildlife populations sustainably and derive financial and other…

The year 2019 was marked by more environmental issues than I have consciously witnessed ever before, and all of them while the drought in Namibia lingered heavily on our minds. Sixteen-year-old activist Greta Thunberg has campaigned fiercely for urgent action against climate change and habitat loss. She became the voice and face for what many others have cautioned against for years already: the destruction and loss of habitat on a terrific scale and the extinction of species, claiming that we are at the beginning of the sixth mass extinction. While many have denounced all of this as nonsense, no-one can dispute the fact that habitats are being threatened at an escalating pace. And with that comes the extinction of species. According to Professor Francois Durand from the University of Johannesburg,…

- Namibia’s conservation success story The sustainable use of wildlife, especially trophy hunting, has played a critical role in the development of communal conservancies. Prior to 1998, there were only four hunting concessions operating on Namibia’s communal lands, with none of these concessions providing meaningful engagement with or benefits to resident communities. Today there are 46 trophy-hunting concessions operating on communal lands, with the conservancies being empowered as both the benefactor and custodian of these hunting concessions. Hunting Concessions held by NAPHA members Communal Conservancies National Park Here is where NAPHA members hunt: 1 - Orupembe - A. Esterhuizen 2 - Uukolonkadhi Ruacana - L. van Zyl 3 - Otjikondavirongo - L. Janse van Vuuren 4 - Sesfontein - L. Janse van Vuuren 5 - ≠Khoadi-//Hôas - G Utz 6…

DEFINITIONS Indigenous – where the species occurs naturally without any human intervention. This refers to the species’ actual distribution, not the countries where it occurs. For example, Waterbuck and Lechwe are indigenous to the wetland systems of NE Namibia – they are not indigenous to the whole of Namibia. Similarly, Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra are indigenous to the western escarpment and central plateau of Namibia, but not to the Kalahari. Endemic – where an indigenous species has a naturally restricted range. Thus, a Namibian endemic means that the species occurs naturally only in Namibia. We therefore have a special responsibility for its conservation. A Southern African endemic means that the natural global distribution of a species is confined to south of the Kunene and Zambezi rivers. Near-endemic – where about 80%…

DIrk de Bot The 2019 trophy is great news for Namibia not only because of its size in an area which is considered not to host such big old elephant, but also for Koos, a veteran PH of 20 years, who has guided in that part of Namibia all of his professional life. In this specific concession, which he runs Huntafrica Safaris Namibia, with James and Christine Chapman, he has hunted for the past decade and prior to that another four years. He knows the seasons, the animals’ behaviour and the people of the San community who live in the multi-use park and who benefit directly from the hunting operations. Over the years he also got to know the ways of the poachers. Anti-poaching efforts have been a key responsibility…