Namibia devises plan to save wild horses teetering on brink of extinction

WINDHOEK, FEB 21– Namibia’s Ministry of Environment and Tourism has developed a plan to rescue the Wild Horses in the Namib Naukluft Park, an official said Wednesday.

The Wild Horses Action Plan covers areas including water provision, tourism development, supplementary feeding and the development of a management plan that will serve as a long-term strategy for the management of these horses, the Minister of Environment, Pohamba Shifeta said in a statement.
The minister said the move followed a recent report on Monday by the Namibia Wild Horses Foundation that a foal was attacked by hyenas and it is uncertain if it would survive the injuries.

“I have directed the officials to ensure that the hyenas are removed from the Garub area. We have so far put down three hyenas including an adult female which is believed to have been the main cause of foal mortality,” he added.

The Garub area in the park is one of the hotspots for tourism in the country and the horses are important as they form a part of Namibia’s heritage.
According to the minister, their extinction will be detrimental not only to the southern region but also to Namibia’s tourism in general, and the ministry will not allow such a situation to occur.

“We are hopeful that the interventions we are putting in place will give the horses a relief for their population to recover,” he added.
In the early 1990s, the horse population in Namibia was estimated between 250 and 300, and now about 79 horses remain in the country and are teetering on the brink of extinction.
The decline in the horse population is mainly attributed to the drought situation in that part of the country and the predation of foals by hyenas. – XINHUA