'Beware of elephants'

2007-09-12 15:35

Windhoek - Namibia's environment and tourism minister Willem Konjore have called Tuesday on Namibians to exercise greater care in regions where elephants abound after the death of four people in the past six weeks in run-ins with the giant animals.

Konjore said people in the Caprivi and Kavango regions in the north-east Erongo and Kunene in the west and north-west should be more careful in the wild and avoid walking around at night.

Both locals and tourists should also avoid disturbing elephants in any way, the minister said.

Since the beginning of the year, ten so-called problem elephants had to be killed in Erongo and the eastern Otjozondjupa regions.

After receiving several complaints about damage caused by elephants to property, the ministry had begun looking at ways to reduce the conflict between people and wildlife.

Namibia's elephant population fluctuates

A higher hunting quota for "problem" elephants and crocodiles roaming outside national parks and conservancies had been set for 2007 and 2008 in the Caprivi and Kavango regions, which had the highest concentration of elephants.

The minister remonstrated: "Citizens of this country should remember that we live in a country with many wild animals and the damage to grazing, crops, water installations, etc, is thus an almost daily occurrence." .

He said that they should be mindful, however, that the benefits of abundant wildlife for the tourism industry - one of the country's key foreign exchange earners - outweighed the damage to property and threat to people.

Namibia's elephant population fluctuated because elephants in the north-eastern Caprivi Strip roamed across the border into and from neighbouring countries, particularly Botswana.

Environment officials estimated at more than 20 000 the number of elephants in the Caprivi and at about 3 000 in the Kavango region.

Sapa-dpa

- SAPA