Due to starvation, Namibia is set to kill 300 zebras, 80 elephants, among other wild animals to feed its population.

Due to starvation, Namibia is set to kill 300 zebras, 80 elephants, among other wild animals to feed its population.

Namibia in the news.

Namibia has announced plans to cull 723 wild animals, including 83 elephants, to provide meat for individuals facing food shortages due to a severe drought affecting southern Africa, as stated by the Environment Ministry. 

This culling according to the Namibia News Agency, will take place in national parks and communal lands where wildlife populations are thought to exceed the capacity of local grazing and water resources.

The region is currently facing its most severe drought in decades, with reports indicating that Namibia depleted 84 percent of its food reserves last month, according to the United Nations.

The Environment Ministry indicated that without intervention, the likelihood of human-wildlife conflicts will rise, with wildlife animals killing people which prompted the decision to cull elephants from identified conflict zones and allocate the meat to drought relief efforts and those who are in dire need of food.

In addition to the elephants been culled or killed, other animals will include 30 hippos, 60 buffalo, 50 impala, 100 blue wildebeest, 300 zebra, and 100 elands, with over 157 animals already harvested by licensed hunters, resulting in more than 56,800 kilograms of meat.

Official data from the World Bank indicates that Namibia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reached a valuation of 12.35 billion US dollars in 2023. 

For the year 2024, Namibia’s population is estimated to be around 3.03 million people.

The country is presently governed by President Nangolo Mbumba, who took office on February 4, 2024, following the death of his predecessor, Hage Geingob.

Aerial view of Namibia from Google. Watch it live here. Microsoft Bing Travel – Windhoek

Images / Video: Holiday Namibia.