Omusati — Thirty-four elephants have been culled after being declared problem-causing animals in areas north of Etosha National Park over the past three years.
This situation highlights the responsible management of wildlife and protection of human lives and property.
Minister of Environment, Forestry and Tourism Indileni Daniel revealed the figure in Parliament while responding to questions about elephant movements, including the recent shooting of an elephant in the Omusati region.
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During the same period, 12 lions and six leopards were also declared and destroyed as problem-causing animals in the same areas.
The figures come against the backdrop of several elephant incidents in Omusati, including the death of a 46-year-old woman who was attacked by an elephant at Omugulugombashe in the Tsandi constituency earlier this year.
The elephant involved in that incident was later destroyed by ministry officials after the animal had been wounded.
Another elephant was also reported roaming around the Onaanda and Elim areas, prompting authorities to warn residents to stay away while officials worked to manage the situation.
The incidents have raised questions about where the elephants come from, particularly whether animals encountered in communities north of Etosha have moved out of the national park.
Daniel, however, clarified that the elephant involved in the recent Omusati case did not migrate from Etosha.
Instead, she said it belonged to a sub-population of elephants that stay outside the park, mainly in the northern regions.
"There are about three hundred elephants outside the Etosha National Park in the northern regions," Daniel said.
The ministry has a tracking system used to monitor elephant movements, although Daniel said not every elephant is fitted with a collar, including the animal involved in the Omusati incidents.
Daniel said the elephant eventually found itself between villages in a highly populated area and began displaying aggressive behaviour, making it a danger to human lives and property.
Relocation issues
She said authorities did not attempt to return the animal to Etosha because it had not originated from the park. The minister explained that moving a solitary elephant away from populated areas is also not a straightforward exercise.
"An elephant, especially a solitary animal, is not an animal that you can drive straight in one way to go where you want it to go," Daniel said.
She said attempting to force the animal in a particular direction could make it more aggressive and create further problems for people in the surrounding area.
Daniel also pointed to the cost involved in attempting to relocate such an animal, saying the specific elephant therefore had to be killed as a problem-causing animal.
She said such interventions are intended to prevent further conflict, mitigate risks and protect people and their property.
"The outcome from declaring and removing a problem causing animal is always prevention, mitigation or protection measures," Daniel said.
The minister also addressed the possible link between elephant movements and Etosha wildfires that affected large parts of the park last year.
Approximately 38% of Etosha National Park burnt in 2025, but Daniel said the fire did not displace the wildlife living inside the park.
"Wild animals in Etosha National Park were not displaced by the fires in the Etosha National Park," she said. According to Daniel, the fire occurred shortly before the first rains, allowing the burnt areas to recover quickly and leaving wildlife with enough suitable habitat within the park. She said the elephant involved in the Omusati case therefore could not be attributed to the fire or regarded as an animal that had fled Etosha because of the destruction of its habitat.
Instead, the animal was part of an established elephant population living outside the park. Daniel's explanation also means that the presence of elephants in the northern areas cannot automatically be linked to movements out of Etosha, as there are resident elephant populations outside the park.
However, encounters between these animals and communities remain a challenge, particularly when elephants move into densely populated areas.
Daniel said the decision to destroy an animal is taken when it is classified as a problem-causing animal and poses a serious threat to people or property.
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She also acknowledged that human behaviour can contribute to human-wildlife conflict.
"Sometimes the problem is not the animals but the people, that is why we say human wildlife conflict should be managed for coexistence," she said.
The 34 elephants destroyed over the past three years, alongside the 12 lions and six leopards, illustrate the difficult balance between protecting communities and conserving wildlife populations outside protected areas.
For communities in Omusati, recent elephant encounters have brought that challenge closer to home, with authorities having to balance the protection of human life and property with the conservation of wildlife.
Daniel said the ministry would continue monitoring elephant movements and responding to individual animals that become a serious threat, while working towards managing human-wildlife conflict in a way that allows communities and wildlife to coexist.
