Context: Botswana aims to transfer 20,000 elephants to Germany. Germany is one of the largest importers of elephant trophies in the world.
About elephants in Botswana
- Botswana is home to world’s largest elephant population of 1.3 lakh animals. Elephants inhabit 40% of Botswana’s area, which has led to increased human-animal conflict.
- Botswana has been a haven for elephants due to its stable government and small human population.
- Peaceful environment: Neighbouring countries such as Namibia and Angola have been riddled with conflict-spurred mass poachings. Following this, elephants in Botswana have stopped crossing the Chobe River which marks Botswana’s border with Namibia.
- Conservation policies: Botswana has implemented strict conservation policies to extent of giving shoot-to-kill orders against suspected poachers in 2013.
- Man-animal conflict: Rising elephant population in Botswana has resulted into increased human-animal conflict in the country. Elephant herds damage homes in rural communities, feed on or destroy crops and trample people or cattle.
- Threat to biodiversity: Elephants threaten other species, biodiversity loss and habitat degradation. Elephants tear down trees for fodder and consume large amounts of water, causing decline of non-elephant population.
Strategies employed by Botswana for checking elephant population
- Donating elephants to countries like Angola, Mozambique and now Germany.
- Allowing trophy hunting which also brings money for the economy as hunters must pay $50,000 for each animal they kill. Trophy hunting brought $5 million to Botswana’s economy in 2021. Regulated trophy hunting helps conserve the wildlife as governments pump the money into conservation efforts and share profits with local economy.
