Lifting of hunting ban aid rural community

The Department of Wildlife and National Parks is taking all the necessary steps to roll out the controlled hunting programme for 2020 to ensure it is in accordance with the set recommendations of May 23, 2019.

In a press statement, the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism explain that in undertaking the process, it would continue to engage all the affected stakeholders.

It further states that the department is working diligently to ensure that controlled hunting programme is guided by the highest ethical standards and principles of science-based sustainability.

“The controlled hunting programme will be founded on strict implementation standards measuring conservation and community benefits. Benefits to communities will go beyond that of immediate cash benefits and expand into building infrastructure and capacity within communities,” it says.

It explains that the ministry will share more information as further developments are made with regard to the implementation of the 2020 hunting season.

The release says the department has also received letters by anti-hunting non-governmental organisations and photo tourism operators claiming the qualifying criteria for the special elephant quota auction and tenders are exclusive and inappropriate.

“The claims are clearly promoting a special interest agenda, not in the best interest of community livelihoods and wildlife conservation.

A restrictive qualifying criterion protects the sector from those seeking to undermine and disrupt the controlled hunting programme,” it explains.

The department also reminds those promoting the mistaken claims that they had the opportunity to acquire the rights to those areas following the implementation of the hunting moratorium, which they did not take advantage of at the time.

The ministry, therefore, reminds all interested parties, including those who have persisted in telling falsehoods about Botswana’s conservation and hunting programme that the decision to lift the hunting moratorium is the sovereign right and decision of Botswana and that it is also based on a democratic, consultative and nationwide process of affected stakeholders.

“The controlling hunting programme will also generate significant conservation benefits and support to community livelihoods that have been devoid since the implementation of the hunting moratorium,” states the media release.

The media release also states that the decision to lift the hunting ban is not done haphazardly as it is based on a democratic and extensive consultative process of affected communities and relevant stakeholders including Non-Governmental Organisations, conservationists, scientists, and leaders of neighbouring countries.

“The decision to lift the hunting ban moratorium was made in the best interest of aiding rural communities’ livelihoods, stemming the rise of human-elephant conflict and incentivising local communities and support sustainable use conservation and tourism”.

It says the lifting of hunting moratorium will revive numerous community-based organisations that became financially defunct following the moratorium as a result of unavailability of their marginal lands for non-consumptive purposes.

The media statement explains that on May 23, 2019, the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism announced the lifting of the hunting ban moratorium following an extensive nationwide, democratic consultative process.

Among the findings of the Presidential Sub-committee of Cabinet on Hunting Ban and Social Dialogue was an appreciation by citizens that they were being consulted and that the decision to implement the hunting ban was not scientifically based.

The committee also established an increasing level of human-elephant conflict and significant impact on community livelihoods.

“Instances of predation on livestock were also recorded to be increasing as well as the hunting moratorium having drastic negative consequences on community livelihoods, especially among communities that previously benefited from consumptive utilisation of natural resources.”

The committee realised that the Department of Wildlife and National Parks was faced with capacity constraints, leading to long response time to problem animal control reports.

One of the findings is the establishment of a general consensus from those consulted that the hunting moratorium should be lifted.