Lift of US ban on elephant trophy hunting boon for Zim
The United States in 2013 banned professional hunters from importing trophies on their escapades in Africa, arguing hunting for trophies had long detrimental effects and threatened the already dwindling population of endangered wildlife species such as elephant and rhino. The ban dealt a huge blow to the Zimbabwean tourism industry which is premised on wildlife, with the country reportedly seating on over 60 tonnes of ivory which it is failing offload due to CITES restrictions coupled with other ivory trade bans. Recently the Donald Trump administration made a climbdown and lifted the ban on elephant trophy hunting in Zimbabwe and Zambia. Our Saturday Herald Features writer Freedom Mupanedemo (FM) talked to the president of the Zimbabwe Tour Operators Association Mr Emmanuel Fundira (EAF) who also attended the meeting which culminated in the lifting of the ban and its meaning for the Zimbabwean tourism sector. Below are excerpts from the interview:
FM: Sir, your organisation plays an important role in bringing in revenue for the country. You attended a conference in Tanzania about two weeks ago jointly hosted by the African Wildlife Conservative Forum and Safari Club International Foundation where the US Fish and Wildlife Services (USFWS) announced the lifting to the ban on elephant trophies from Zimbabwe. To begin with, what does the lifting of the ban mean to the Safari Operators Association and the Zimbabwean tourism industry in general? EAF: The lifting of the ban, which was long overdue, was a general acceptance by the USA Government through their Agency USFWS (United States Fish and Wildlife Services) that they had erred in the first place. It is however a welcome development for us. FM: How much does professional hunting bring to Zimbabwe in terms of revenue, say per annum? EAF: Accordingly to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) 2016 figures, hunting contributed $22 million in direct foreign currency earnings. Where 67 percent of the sport hunters are drawn from the Americas, USA, Canada and South America it follows therefore that a significant amount of revenue was lost as a result of restrictions imposed on a major source market like the US. FM: How much revenue do you think the country could have been deprived of from elephant trophy hunting ban for the past three years it has been in force? EAF : Hunting revenues dropped on average by 30 percent and it goes without saying that the earnings dropped proportionally. The net effect was however, lower as operators began to open new markets to mitigate against huge financial losses. FM: So, how much revenue is this lifting of the ban likely to bring into Zimbabwe? EAF: It is not possible to provide a definitive answer in this case. Suffice to say that we expect an exponential growth in revenue streams. The target is to achieve a 25 to 35 percent growth in earnings. FM: Is the lifting of the ban going to help us manage our elephant population in line with sustainable environment conservation given the fact that an elephant needs at least 1 square km to forage and at least 200 litres of water per day? EAF: Obviously yes because as a country we currently have in excess of our holding capacity in terms of elephant population. FM: What is Zimbabwe’s elephant population vis-a-vis our holding capacity? EAF: Zim ecological capacity is around 50 000 elephants whereas at the last count in 2015-6 our elephant population stood at 88 000 head which is not sustainable. FM: There has been talk that Zimbabwe is stuck with several tonnes of ivory? Are there any measures your association is taking to lobby CITIES to lift the ban on ivory trade as well as increasing the tonnage a country can sell? EAF: The lobby for disposal of ivory is ongoing. However, the success factor is somewhat a bit remote as there is a very strong lobby and big money being put against the disposal of ivory. The Zimbabwean position has always remained that we do not burn (our ivory stock holdings) but instead find avenues to secure revenue and funding in lieu of burning. Japan has a growing carving ivory market and overtures are being explored to ensure that we offload the ivory but within the confines and through CITES approved methods. FM: There are wildlife conservation groups putting pressure on China to also ban ivory trade. What effect will this have on Zimbabwe if it finally gives in to the pressure? EAF: China has already bowed to international pressure and imposed a ban on domestic trade with effect from 2016. The position taken by China has been disconcerting and we continue to lobby them to rescind their decision. FM: Zimbabwe is currently spending money on guarding ivory stocks, is this not financially draining instead of the country benefiting from the sales? EAF: That is correct and very unfortunate as these stock piles are a result of a number of factors ranging from deaths through natural attrition and some recoveries out of poaching. We then need to offload these piles through lawful trading channels than keeping it. FM: In your view, are these bans on ivory trade helpful and effective in their intended purpose to fight the extinction of wildlife? EAF: Trophy hunting and meat incentivise communities to want to protect and dedicate land for wildlife use. Besides, in Zimbabwe 800 000 families benefit directly from wildlife, in particular through Rural Development Council’s CAMPFIRE programmes. Under the CAMPFIRE programmes, revenue realised from wildlife sales is ploughed back into the communities for infrastructural development, water sanitation services and road maintenance. Revenue is also used to build schools and clinics. As a result, communities see value and therefore develop a strong appetite to protect their source of livelihood. In conclusion, the success of the above programmes has seen the growth of our wildlife species and we continue to pride ourselves as one of the few countries where visitors can see and hunt the Big Five in open fields.