15 Dec 2019

Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism has drafted National Elephant Action Plan (NEAP) which seeks to enhance management and monitoring of elephants in the country.

Addressing NEAP draft implementation workshop in Maun recently, deputy permanent secretary in the ministry, Mr Felix Monngae said the plan would help address human-wildlife conflict and illegal killing of elephants.

The workshop, Mr Monngae noted, was meant to engage stakeholders on the NEAP draft before the 10-year management plan was implemented.

He said NEAP, once implemented, would ensure proper management of elephants, saying former management plans were partially implemented.

Mr Monngae explained that the eight critical areas of the management plan of elephants aimed to reduce challenges associated with elephant management.

“Some of the proposed NEAP areas include erection of an elephant proof fence along existing buffer zone fences specifically meant to control elephant movements,” he said.

Other areas would include a call to reduce illegal killing of elephants and illegal trade in elephant products as well as maintain habitats for elephants.

NEAP will also promote human-wildlife coexistence by reducing elephant numbers in certain areas.

Mr Monngae further noted that the other areas were to enhance community socio-economic benefits from sustainable elephant management and to implement the NEAP.

He said the NEAP took into consideration changes in management that had happened in the past 20 years and changes related to agreements with organisations such as Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora.

Mr Monngae further said poaching of elephants had increased in Southern Africa in recent years.

In Botswana, he  said poaching had increased in the past two years with about 87 elephants poached between April 2018 and March this year.

Nonetheless, Mr Monngae said number of poached elephants in Botswana were not alarming as they could not lead to significant decrease of elephant population.

Again, he indicated that large populations of elephant in Botswana had resulted in challenges in management of the species associated with human-wildlife conflict and poaching.

Mr Monngae said 46 people were killed by elephants.

He said that there had been an increase in compensation resulting from elephant destruction.

“An amount of P21 million was paid as compensation for wildlife damages in 2018/19 financial year,” he said.

In his remarks, North West district assistant commissioner, Mr Ramogaupi Gaborekwe said elephants’ importance to the ecosystem could not be overlooked although they caused human-wildlife conflicts.

He therefore said a management tool was necessary for co-existence and sustainable development. Ends