Ministry earns N$4,4m from auctioning off 37 elephants

Another transaction involving 20 elephants is still on the cards.The minsitry says it hopes to earn N$1,5 million from this sale, bringing the total to N$5,9 million.Executive director of environment, forestry and tourism Teofilus Nghitila says a total of N$3,3 million was generated from 22 elephants exported to the United Arab Emirates recently.“The 22 elephants were sold at an average price of N$150 000 per elephant and were captured in the Kamanjab area. The 15 elephants bought by N/a'ankuse generated a total of N$1,125 million at an average price of N$75 000 per elephant,” he says. Nghitila says 20 remaining elephants will be supplied once the necessary permits have been acquired, and once the sales agreement is signed and funds are paid to the Game Product, Trust Fund. “This will generate revenue of N$1,5 million. “It is furthermore important to note that all the above-mentioned amounts do not include any costs related to capture, the translocation or care of the elephants, and that the buyers are responsible for all of these costs,” he says. According to a 2016 census, the number of elephants in the country stands at 24 091, with an estimated 1 172 elephants in the north-west of the country.“The decision is to put 170 elephants up for auction in an effort to relieve the pressure from human-elephant conflict on communities in the four hotspot areas of Omatjette, Kamanjab, Grootfontein-Kavango Cattle Ranch, and Grootfontein-Tsumkwe,” he says.Nghitila says the decision was not taken lightly, and is fully in line with Namibia's laws, policies and various international agreements to which the country is a party. “We are furthermore fully confident that it will not jeopardise the overall population and health of elephants in the country at large,” he says.Rosemary Alles, the president and co-founder of Global March for Elephants and Rhinos, says using human-elephant conflict as justification for capturing and selling elephants is faulty, disingenuous and without merit. “The exercise lacks intellectual rigour, is pathetic, and does not consider the multiple viable alternatives that are less disruptive to earth's last remaining terrestrial giants and the credibility of the Namibian government,” she says. Alles says there is no verifiable evidence that capturing and selling elephants will mitigate human-elephant conflict, and the solution is neither effective, nor sustainable, as has been proven multiple times in southern Africa.“The best solutions are realised by engaging communities in the proper management of wild landscapes to ensure both humans and animals are protected. “I cannot help but juxtapose the Namibian government's most recent enterprise surrounding the capture and sale of an ancient creature with a civilisation lasting about 53 million years,” she says.“What will happen to these elephants? In a world mired in multiple bloody wars, when do humans begin to revere life, all of life, as one? When do we start making peace with each other and our natural world?” she asks.

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