The last population census in 2008 revealed that the parks and estates had 100,000 elephants, 25,000 buffalo and 70,000 zebra all animals targeted by poachers. Caroline Washaya Moyo, PR manager for the authority, blamed the lack of up-to-date information on financial challenges. She dismissed the allegations of poaching and corruption as baseless.
The country has been hard-hit by a rise in poaching. In December, wildlife hunting licences were suspended in a bid to curb poaching.
According to statistics provided by the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, the country last year lost 350 rhinos, 20,000 zebras and more than 6,000 elephants to illegal hunters. Most rhino horns and zebra skins leaving the country end up in so-called medicines in south-east and east Asia, especially Vietnam, and also in China. Wildlife tourism was once one of the countrys major foreign currency earners before a decade of invasions of national parks by President Robert Mugabes supporters.
Post published in: News