In response to severe drought conditions, the government of Namibia has announced plans to cull over 700 wild animals to help feed its people. The animals include staples such as elephants, hippos, buffalo, wildebeest and more.
This measure aims to address acute food insecurity affecting around half of the country’s population due to the ongoing state of emergency. Officials from the African nation stated that the meat from these animals will be distributed among citizens in need.
The culling will be conducted in national parks and areas where wildlife populations are deemed sustainable. Additionally, this plan intends to alleviate overpopulation issues that strain available grazing and water resources, particularly in times of drought.
Last year, another severe drought led to the deaths of hundreds of elephants as watering holes dried up. With many of the nation’s elephants now again searching for water, the Namibian government is also concerned about rising conflicts between these animals and people as they compete for available resources.
“Elephant numbers need to be reduced as a measure to assist in reducing prevailing cases of human wildlife conflict,” said the Namibian Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism in a statement.
“With the severe drought situation in the country, conflicts are expected to increase if no interventions are made. To this effect, 83 elephants from identified conflict areas will be culled, meat will be allocated to the drought relief program under the Office of the Prime Minister.”
As of now, over 150 animals have already been culled, yielding more than 125,000 pounds of meat. Meanwhile, as Southern Africa faces its worst drought in decades, the crisis has led to soaring levels of hunger for tens of millions of people in the region.
