Namibia has largest population of free-roaming black rhinos: official

WINDHOEK, March 31  — Namibia now boasts the largest population of free-roaming black rhinos in the world, and has rebuilt the white rhino population after local extinction during the colonial era, an official said Wednesday.
“We have the largest population of cheetah in the world and we also have healthy populations of hippo, giraffe and zebra, large predators and various other wildlife species,” Namibia’s Minister of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta said at the launch of the country’s three decades of conversation campaign at an event in Windhoek.
According to Shifeta, Namibia has also managed to succeed in protecting high-value, threatened, and endangered species from poaching and illegal trafficking.
“Although we have largely experienced a decline in poaching in recent years, it is our intention to eradicate this scourge and ensure that no animal is poached in Namibia. Apart from celebrating our achievements in combating wildlife crimes, the campaign will create awareness of their effects, as well as the implications for those caught carrying out such crimes,” he added.
Shifeta said commendable work is being done on the ground against wildlife crimes through collaborative efforts with various stakeholders like the uniformed security forces, civil society organizations, the private sector, conservancies, and members of the public.
Namibia this year recorded two cases of rhino poaching, 43 in 2021 and 40 in 2020, he added.
“In regards to elephant poaching, one elephant has been poached this year, 8 in 2021, and 12 in 2020. Notably, we can observe that there has been an increase in some sectors of wildlife crime and a decrease in others in 2021 and therefore requires us to rededicate ourselves as stakeholders,” he said.  (Xinhua)