Kunene lions will be removed

The environment and tourism ministry is taking steps to capture and translocate a pride of 10 to 15 lions suspected of having killed 86 goats and sheep in the Kunene Region last week.

The lions will be taken “to areas where they will not cause any conflict with people,” the ministry announced yesterday.

“Only if there are challenges in capturing specific individual lions of this pride, then such individuals will be destroyed, but our first priority is to translocate these animals,” the ministry said. It emphasised that human-wildlife conflict management was a top priority for the ministry, and required striking a balance between conservation priorities and the needs of the people who live with wildlife.

The ministry emphasised that it took human-wildlife conflict seriously.

“It is a complex and serious problem that, if not addressed appropriately and treated with the necessary understanding and respect, and managed effectively, can harm if not destroy conservation efforts and tourism benefits for the country.”

The statement was issued in the wake of reports that a Torra Conservancy farmer, Samuel Gawiseb, lost stock valued at more than N$100 000 last week after the group of lions entered one of his kraals during the night and killed most of the animals inside. Only eight kids survived.

It is estimated that Gawiseb will suffer a financial loss of more than N$80 000, as the compensation programme for stock loss currently pays out merely N$200 for a goat and N$250 for a sheep, while their market value is more than N$1 000.

The ministry noted that preliminary investigations had found that the kraal in which the goats and sheep were killed was not strong enough “and was not built in accordance with the predator-proof requirements”.

The ministry recognised the role it plays in helping communities and farmers to reduce or manage conflict with wildlife, but said the responsibility does not rest with the government alone.

“It is the responsibility of all citizens, farmers, organisations and organs of state that engage in land use and that can be affected by human-wildlife conflict to take measures to avoid such conflict,” it emphasised.

“Every person has a general duty of care to take reasonable measures to prevent or minimise damage being caused or to be caused by wild animals.”

The ministry explained that human-wildlife conflict must be managed in a way that recognises the rights and developmental needs of local communities, promotes biodiversity conservation and self-reliance, and ensures that decision-making is quick, efficient and based on the best available information.

The ministry said it recognised the threat posed by human-wildlife conflict and was finalising a review of the national policy on human-wildlife conflict management, under which the human-lion conflict management plan for north-western Namibia was developed.

Criticism was levelled at the ministry over the past few days for failing to collar lions in conservation areas in order to provide farmers with a monitoring and early-warning system.

On social media, many demanded that the lions be killed, though others warned that that would be a blow to conservation in the region.

The ministry was also urged to help farmers make their kraals predator proof and to teach them how to prevent conflict with wildlife.

JANA-MARI SMITH