Namibia plans to cull 723 wild animals, including 83 elephants, as part of efforts to alleviate food shortages caused by a severe drought gripping southern Africa. The environment ministry announced that the meat will be distributed to communities struggling with food insecurity.
The culling will take place in national parks and communal areas where authorities believe wildlife populations have outgrown the available grazing land and water resources, the ministry said in a statement released on Monday.
Southern Africa is experiencing its worst drought in decades, with Namibia depleting 84% of its food reserves by last month, according to the United Nations. Nearly half of Namibia’s population is expected to face severe food insecurity in the coming months.
The environment ministry warned that without intervention, conflicts between humans and wildlife would likely escalate amid the worsening drought conditions.
“To address this, 83 elephants from identified conflict zones will be culled, and the meat will be allocated to the drought relief program,” the statement said.
In addition to elephants, the country plans to cull 30 hippos, 60 buffalo, 50 impala, 100 blue wildebeest, 300 zebra, and 100 eland.
So far, 157 animals have been culled by professional hunters and companies contracted by the government, providing over 56,800 kilograms of meat.
“This action is necessary and aligns with our constitutional mandate to utilize natural resources for the benefit of Namibian citizens,” the ministry added.
The southern African region is home to one of the world’s largest elephant populations, with more than 200,000 elephants spread across five countries: Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Angola, and Namibia.
