THE minister of environment and tourism wants to award trophy-hunting concessions on State land outside registered conservancies between 2013 to 2017 to promote black economic participation and increase benefits to the community in and near the Mangetti National Park.

The concessions to be granted are for eastern Kavango, the Mangetti National Park in western Kavango, part of the Bwabwata National Park, the Waterberg Plateau Park, in the Daan Viljoen and Von Back Game Parks, as well as part of the Namib-Naukluft Park.

The species to be hunted include elephant, leopard, roan, spotted hyaena, blue wildebeest, duiker, steenbok, buffalo, hippopotamus, crocodile, sable, lechwe, eland, giraffe, Hartman zebra, kudu, impala, eland, warthog, oryx and klipspringer.

The ministry said trophy hunting removes mostly old, post-reproductive animals or single males, which are usually in excess in natural populations.

Controlled hunting is thus viewed as sustainable use of wildlife populations.

Namibia has an annual export quota of five old post-reproductive male black rhino trophies approved by the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

But the ministry has now proposed that the black rhinos be sold by tender and not on auction. Concessions are sold on auction.

Cabinet approved trophy hunting on State land in 2007. Hunting on State land started in 2009, and most of the revenue was reinvested in wildlife conservation and management through the Game Products Trust Fund.

Namibia’s trophy-hunting industry ranks third in Africa after Tanzania and South Africa. It is in strong competition with Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique.