Harare, Zimbabwe – In an effort to address severe food shortages caused by the worst drought in four decades, Zimbabwe’s wildlife authorities announced plans to cull around 200 elephants and distribute the meat to affected communities.
Tinashe Farawo, a spokesperson for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority (Zimparks), confirmed the culling plans, stating, “We can confirm that we are planning to cull about 200 elephants across the country. We are working on modalities on how we are going to do it.”
The culling will take place in the Hwange, Mbire, Tsholotsho, and Chiredzi districts, and marks the first such action in the country since 1988. The decision follows a similar move by neighboring Namibia, which recently culled 83 elephants and distributed the meat to people impacted by the drought.
Zimbabwe is home to over 84,000 elephants, significantly more than the 55,000 that the country’s conservation areas can sustainably support. Farawo stated that the culling is part of efforts to “decongest the parks in the face of drought,” adding that the 200 elephants being culled are “a drop in the ocean” compared to the overall population.
The severe drought has also led to an escalation in human-wildlife conflicts, as resources become increasingly scarce. Last year, Zimbabwe lost 50 people to elephant attacks.
Despite its conservation efforts and growing elephant population, Zimbabwe has been lobbying the United Nations’ Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to reopen the trade of ivory and live elephants. The country currently has ivory stockpiles worth an estimated $600,000, which it is unable to sell under current CITES regulations.
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