Botswana will auction licences to hunt a total of 70 elephants in seven districts, the first to take place since President Mokgweetsi Masisi lifted a five-year ban on big game hunting last May.
Africa’s overall elephant population is declining due to poaching but Botswana, home to almost a third of the continent’s elephants, has seen numbers grow to 130,000 from 80,000 in the late 1990s.
Botswanan officials say hunting is necessary to ease conflict between animals and humans, especially farmers who have seen their crops and infrastructure destroyed by elephants roaming outside their feeding zones.
According to a spokeswoman for the Department of National Parks and Wildlife,the licences will be for controlled hunting areas and the auction is open only to Botswana registered companies.
“There are seven hunting packages, of 10 elephants each, available. The seven areas chosen are those most impacted by human-wildlife conflict, especially involving elephants,” says Alice Mmolawa
Bidders are expected to pay a refundable deposit of 200,000 pula ($18,000) each, according to the auctioneers.
Botswana and its neighbours, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia and South Africa have in the last few years reconsidered conservation laws to try and balance the need to protect sought-after species such as Elephants, Rhinos and Buffalo from poaching while managing the danger they pose as they encroach on areas of human habitation.
