Chamwe Kaira
The Namibia Professional Hunting Association (NAPHA) is worried that said a hunting ban as proposed in the United Kingdom can potentially have devastating effects on the hunting industry.
Kristin Maritz, one of the executives of the Namibia Professional Hunting Association told Observer Money that although the United Kingdom is not a primary market for the Namibian hunting industry, should they decide to pass the ban, animal rights activists in other countries like Germany, Austria and even the USA who are the primary markets for Namibian trophy hunting, might use it as a template to validate their proposals for similar bans.
Maritz said if compared to a commercial tourist it quickly becomes evident that a hunting tourist has a much bigger economical footprint, while having a much smaller carbon footprint -, as the hunting industry has a quite sizeable value chain within Namibia.
While hunting farms operate nearly identical to commercial tourism accommodations hunting lodges are most of the times exclusive to the hunting party booked there, the official said.
“Hunting lodges also provide much more job opportunities to the local people than any cattle farm, sheep farm or goat farm. Hunting lodges needs at least one cook, cleaners for the rooms, waiters and a laundry lady to mention only a few extra labourers are needed. The spin off or extra people receiving a salary providing for their families is enormous if one thinks that one person receiving a salary takes care of a minimum of two extra people which will otherwise be a burden to the government,” said Maritz.
The NAPHA official said hunters visiting the country also often go on sight-seeing tours through the country before or after their hunting safari, taking part in other activities like hot air ballooning, fishing safaris and cultural experiences.
“To hunt a trophy costs many times more than if a similar animal was hunted just for the meat. The meat of the animal is still the property of the farmer and can be sold, or used on the farm. At a hunting farm all these extra people share in the availability of meat which is purely organic and healthy.”
Maritz added that hunters often buy expensive gifts like jewelry, or leather products for their loved ones, bringing in valuable foreign currency.
In addition, the official said to have a trophy prepared by a professional taxidermy does not come cheap either. “Taxidermy is an art form and good art has a price.”
Maritz said research has shown that hunting tourists arriving in Namibia only amount to 3 to 5% of total tourism arrivals, but contribute up to a quarter of the total tourism turnover. “Think about the carbon footprint.”
Talking the impact, the ban would have on commercial hunting farms and communal areas, Maritz said a ban of trophy import or hunting in general will possibly result in less trophy hunters to visit Namibia, leading to affected parties looking for different sources of income, which will very likely be crop or livestock farming.
“Unfortunately, game animals are in direct competition to crops or livestock, be it by eating the grass meant for cattle, trying to graze on crops, or eating the livestock. This means that game will need to be reduced, due to a loss of habitat and limiting of threats to the new source of income.”
Maritz said hunting often takes place in areas that are considered “unattractive”, or difficult to access for commercial tourists and often in communal areas of Namibia, benefitting the communities that are living in these areas.
“Communities living in hunting conservancies receive a share of the financial proceeds generated by the hunt as well as meat, they also benefit from infrastructure improvements done by outfitters. The contracts between the outfitters and the conservancies are negotiated between the two parties before the tender to the conservancy is awarded.”
Maritz said large animals like elephants or lions play a big role in the human wildlife conflict causing damage to crops and posing a threat to livestock and human lives.
“Human Wildlife Conflict Compensations are partially funded by problem animals being tendered to trophy hunting clients. Trophy hunting also funds a lot of anti-poaching initiatives, paying for game rangers, and the upkeep of fences and vehicles to protect animals like the Black Rhino from poachers. Without Trophy Hunting there might not be enough money to pay for all this.”
Maritz warned that if animals like Elephants start overpopulating an area, because they cannot be hunted, they start causing devastating damage to their surroundings which will result in the loss of habitat of other species, like for example the pangolin or riverine forest species like bushbuck, as is already happening along the rivers in Namibia’s Zambezi Region.
Loss in habitat is not true only for animals but also think about the bird life which will be affected as well as all other sorts of live, the official said.
“The arrogance of foreign entities trying to dictate how African countries should manage their natural resources is astounding. Countries that hunted their own animals to extinction because they could not come up with a sustainable concept to benefit from nature are now in the process of trying to ruin countless livelihoods elsewhere in the world with their ignorance and misguided sense of righteousness.”
