Namibia's wildlife faces threats amid US funding freeze

The US government has not only frozen funds for foreign humanitarian programmes but also for international biodiversity conservation, which will have a notable impact on environmental protection and the fight against wildlife crime in Namibia.Some of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) funds have supported grants worth hundreds of millions of dollars for international conservation programmes under the US Fish and Wildlife Service.In Namibia, the protection of key wildlife species such as elephants, black rhinos and pangolins hangs in the balance, along with support for wildlife rangers and community conservation projects.Serious concerns have been raised in conservation circles about the critical impact of the funding loss on the country&#039;s natural resources, prompting an urgent search for alternative donors."It is time for the Namibian government to become self-sustainable and no longer rely on donors," said Dr Rudie van Vuuren from the N/a’an ku sê Foundation, a prominent figure in medical and conservation circles, in an interview with Network Media Hub (NMH) last week. The ministries of environment, forestry and tourism, the justice and finance ministries, the Namibian police and various agencies and multiple Namibian conservation projects have received funding from the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) to combat wildlife crime.The survival of the world’s most trafficked and highly endangered mammal – the pangolin – is at stake. According to Kelsey Prediger, founder of the Pangolin Conservation and Research Foundation, the US government had supported their efforts against pangolin traffickers, “but now everything is indefinitely frozen.”Since 2018, a total of 570 pangolins have been poached in Namibia, with 35 rescued, released and monitored over the past four years.Wildlife traffickingThe World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Namibia receives funding through the INL for projects aimed at combatting wildlife trafficking in Namibia and curbing illegal wildlife trade within the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA).The overarching goal of INL projects is to reduce the poaching of protected wildlife and the illegal smuggling of their body parts from Namibia. This also includes protected plant species and timber of African origin that are trafficked across the continent. Another key objective is to dismantle wildlife crime syndicates that profit from smuggling.The broader aim of these projects is to strengthen Namibia’s criminal justice institutions, ensuring effective law enforcement, investigations and prosecutions of wildlife crimes. The initiatives are also designed to strategically support Namibia’s wildlife crime response strategies, developed in recent years, which culminated in the National Strategy on Wildlife Protection and Law Enforcement.Further, the projects aim to improve the capacity of the forensic and criminal justice systems in Namibia to enhance the successful prosecution of wildlife crime syndicates and criminals, leading to a reduction in wildlife crime.In Otjiwarongo, the first special wildlife crime court was opened in January, with plans for the further implementation of special wildlife crime courts across the country. In 2024, special wildlife crime courts were opened in Oshakati, Rundu and Katima Mulilo, bringing the total to 181 cases heard, of which 102 have been concluded. These courts play a significant role in clearing the backlog of wildlife crime cases and speeding up case resolutions.The INL programme supports and collaborates with various partners, including the Namibia Nature Foundation (NNF), Rooikat Trust, Save the Rhino Trust (SRT), the Natural Resources Working Group (NRWG) through the umbrella community conservation organisation Nacso and the KAZA secretariat.Government is represented by the environment ministry, its Intelligence and Investigations Unit (IIU), the Namibian Police and their Protected Resources Division (PRD), as well as their joint strategic partnership, the Blue Rhino Task Force. The Office of the Prosecutor General in the justice ministry and the Customs Department (NamRA) in the finance ministry are also involved.Kaza rolesWWF Namibia plays the primary management and coordination role for the USAID-supported Combatting Wildlife Crime Program (CWCP) in Namibia and KAZA, which aims to tackle the growing threat of cross-border wildlife crime targeting rhinos and elephants. The programme’s goal is to increase the black rhino population in north-western Namibia and expand the elephant distribution area within KAZA.It involves several partners, implemented by a consortium of 12 organisations across the five KAZA member countries, creating a network of civil society organisations working within Namibia and across KAZA borders.Elephant poaching has significantly decreased, but last year, 81 rhinos were poached and 14 horns were seized. A total of 77 suspects were arrested, of whom 59 remain in custody, and 18 were granted bail.The German government continues to support and fund wildlife protection programmes through the German Development Bank (KfW), but in conservation circles, there is a rush to secure additional financiers.- francoise@nmh.com.na

Namibia's wildlife faces threats amid US funding freeze

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Namibian Sun 2025-02-24

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Namibia's wildlife faces threats amid US funding freeze

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Namibian Sun 2025-02-24

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