Search

News

Zimbabwe Parks Forced To Sell Wildlife Amid Devastating Drought

By Jennifer Deutschmann

From the archive: published May 5, 2016, 10 years ago. Details may have changed since.

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority has confirmed plans to sell wild animals amid a devastating drought. In Monday’s press release, park officials said potential buyers will be required to prove they have the means to provide adequate housing and care for the animals. However, they did not reveal the species or number of animals to be sold.

In an interview with CNN, Environment, Water, and Climate Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said the sale will allow Zimparks to “buy food and secure water facilities” for the animals that remain on the parks estates.

Zimbabwe’s wildlife sale was prompted by a severe drought, which has devastated the region. The Guardian reports the drought was only worsened by an unusually long El Niño weather pattern.

In February, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe declared a state of disaster as reservoirs ran dry, livestock began dying at an alarming rate, and crops failed to thrive. As a result of the brutal weather conditions, Mugabe confirmed, “more than a quarter of the population face food shortages.”

At this time, there is no end in sight and little hope for relief. Public works minister Saviour Kasukuwere discusses the dire situation.

“Initial indications were that 1.5 million people were food-insecure with all the 60 rural districts being affected. Overall, the food insecure population has since risen to 2.44 million – 26 percent of the population.”

Unfortunately, the drought has also affected wildlife living on Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority estates.

As the parks do not receive much in the way of government funding, they rely on profits from hunting and tourism. However, the cost of sustaining the animals during a severe drought is astronomical.

Zimbabwe’s plan to sell wildlife may seem unusual, but it is not unheard of. In 2015, officials authorized the sale of nearly 90 young elephants to China and Thailand for up to $60,000 each.

National Geographic reports the animals were sold “to bring much-needed revenue and ecological balance to their country’s struggling parks.”

Although live elephant trade is prohibited by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, Zimbabwe is suspected in the export of as many as 150 elephants between 2000 and 2013 alone.

Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority spokeswoman Caroline Washaya-Moyo did not reveal whether the animals will be exported to foreign buyers. However, as reported by Reuters, she confirmed the organization has a target number of sales dependent on the number of bids received.

Prospective buyers are encouraged to contact Zimparks with a bid for the animal or animals they wish to purchase. They are also required to provide proof that they have the means to adequately feed and house the animals.

“… provide the following information about the habitat which they intend to put the acquired animals: name and address of property, size of property, ownership of the property, description of current land use, intended use for the acquired animals and existing infrastructure e.g. fences, water availability, roads, fireguards, protection/law enforcement capacity and management.”

Although they provided a press release with some details about the planned wildlife sale, Zimbabwe officials have not confirmed which animals will be sold or the target number of sales.

Historically, animal rights organizations have protested the sale of wild animals. However, wildlife officials have argued that it is a humane alternative to an outright cull. Amid similar sales in the past, wildlife officials said culls and sales are far more humane than letting the animals die of exposure or starvation.

At this time, no animal rights organizations have spoken out about the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority’s current wild animal sale.

Latest from Inquisitr

Front page