Tourism and Environment

Region launches massive elephant population survey

Published

4 years ago

November 16, 2021

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) has launched the first ever KAZA-wide coordinated aerial survey of elephants in areas that include Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe at a cost of US$3 million.

In a joint statement by KAZA and the five member states, the initiative said the survey was a demonstration of the countries’ concerted efforts to implement the KAZA Treaty, which calls for regionally integrated approaches towards harmonising policies, strategies, and practices for managing shared natural resources straddling the international borders of KAZA.

“The survey is a fundamental component of the KAZA Strategic Planning Framework for the Conservation and Management of Elephants,” the statement said.

“It is also one of the action points of the 2019 Kasane Elephant Summit and a directive by our Heads of State.

“The elephant population of KAZA represents more than 50 percent of the remaining savanna elephants (Loxodonta Africana) found in Africa, a species recently listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as globally endangered.

“On a positive note, the IUCN Red List acknowledged that savanna elephants are stable or increasing in KAZA, unlike the rest of the continent, which is a clear testament of the positive outcomes of the management interventions within KAZA.”

The KAZA elephant population is the largest contiguous transboundary elephant population in the world, inhabiting KAZA’s diverse landscape which is home to an estimated population of two million people, and has a geographic scope of approximately 520 000km².

“The survey will start in July – August 2022 and run for 4 months, with an expected cost of nearly US$3 million,”

“Results from the survey will contribute significantly towards the decisions on the sustainable management of KAZA’s elephant population.

The survey, according to the organisation will be coordinated by the KAZA secretariat in close collaboration with designated teams in each of the five countries and will be based on the recently revised Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants aerial survey standards.

The survey will be funded by the World Wildlife Fund, and donor partners comprising of Paul G Allen Family Foundation, the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development through KfW, Dutch Postcode Lottery Dreamfund, USAID Combating Wildlife Crime in Namibia and the Kavango-Zambezi Area Project, UK Foreign, UK’s Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Environment and Protected Areas Authority of Sharjah from United Arab Emirates.

“As KAZA partner states and coordinating ministries, we reaffirm our commitment to the joint pursuit of science-led conservation practices driven by a firm belief that accurate and reliable data is the foundation to making informed strategic decisions about the long-term protection and management of Africa’s largest transboundary elephant population.”

The KAZA TFCA secretariat was established in 2011 by the KAZA partener states to manage the day-to-day operations of the TFCA.

Its overall mandate is to facilitate the development of KAZA TFCA into a world-class conservation area and premier tourism destination.

This mandate is executed under the guidance of KAZA Partner States with support from development partners and a consortium of stakeholders.

Sports

Zimparks, VFWT join forces to rescue snared elephant

Published

1 week ago

August 5, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A dramatic rescue operation was carried out last week by the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust, in collaboration with Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks), to save a young female elephant from a wire snare.

According to a statement posted by the Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust on Facebook:

“Last week, we received an urgent call from Zimparks about a young female elephant in distress—a wire snare was tightly wrapped around her mouth and tusks.”

The elephant was spotted near Masuwe Lodge, where her herd was peacefully drinking at the waterhole. Acting swiftly, the trust’s team carefully separated the distressed elephant from her herd and darted her, allowing them to remove the snare and collect vital health samples.

Thankfully, the wire hadn’t cut deeply, and the young elephant was soon back on her feet, reunited with her family.

The Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust expressed gratitude to Zimparks and Adrian Read for their dedication to protecting wildlife, saying:

“Thank you to Zimparks and Adrian Read for their dedication to protecting our wildlife.”

Slider

Zimparks defends trophy hunting of collared lion in Hwange

Published

1 week ago

August 4, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

Zimbabwe’s wildlife authority, Zimparks, has defended the killing of a collared lion, Blondie, in Hwange National Park, despite widespread outrage and criticism from conservationists.

According to BBC News, Blondie, a well-known lion studied by University of Oxford academics, was killed by trophy hunters just outside Hwange National Park in late June. The lion was wearing a collar sponsored by Africa Geographic, a safari company, to support long-term conservation efforts.

In a press statement, Zimparks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said:

“Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) confirms that a recent hunt of a collared lion in Hwange National Park was legally conducted, with the necessary approvals and having fully complied with all regulations. Contrary to ongoing speculation, there was no illegality involved in this hunt. While collared animals are marked for research purposes, this does not exempt them from being legally hunted under regulated circumstances. We urge the public to stop spreading wrong information that may cause unnecessary alarm. ZimParks remains committed to transparent wildlife management upholding the regulations in all activities.”

According to BBC News, Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic, expressed his dismay and anger over the incident, saying that Blondie’s prominent collar did not prevent him from being hunted. Espley also noted that Blondie was a breeding male in his prime, contradicting claims that trophy hunters only target old, non-breeding males.

The incident has drawn comparisons to the killing of Cecil the lion in 2015, which sparked widespread outrage and calls for stricter regulations on trophy hunting.

Slider

Renowned conservationist Alan Elliott passes away at 86

Published

2 weeks ago

August 1, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The conservation world is mourning the loss of Alan Elliott, a pioneering conservationist and tourism operator who passed away this morning around 2AM at Materdei Hospital in Bulawayo.

Elliott, affectionately known as “Mandebele,” was 86 years old.

Photo by Charlene Hewat

Elliott’s contributions to conservation and tourism in Zimbabwe are immeasurable. He was one of the first people to bring tourism to Hwange, Zimbabwe’s largest national park, and founded Touch the Wild, a tourism operation that hosted numerous celebrities, including the Queen and Prince Philip.

We then contacted Charlene Hewat, a close associate of Elliott’s Presidential Elephant Research Trust (PERT), to explain further about his conservation work. Hewat described Elliott as an extraordinary conservationist who dedicated his life to protecting elephants. “Alan’s legacy is imprinted on the wild landscapes he loved so dearly and protected so fiercely,” Hewat said in a Facebook post.

In an interview, Hewat elaborated on Elliott’s work, highlighting his efforts to protect elephants in Hwange. “He went and got a decree from President (Robert) Mugabe to protect the presidential elephants, and he received that decree, and they agreed that they would not shoot any elephants within the Dete Hwange area,” Hewat explained.

Elliott’s passing has sent shockwaves throughout the conservation community, with many paying tribute to his remarkable legacy. “He’s a legend. Everybody knows him,” Hewat said. “He was an MP in Hwange, spoke fluent Ndebele, and knew a lot of the ministers. He’s just an amazing man, a legend for Zimbabwe.”

As a testament to his enduring legacy, Elliott had asked Hewat to carry on his work with the Presidential Elephant Research Trust. “It was his vision to promote young Zimbabwean researchers, and that’s something that I share and think we can take forward for the country and for the youth,” Hewat said.