R5m pledged towards saving rhino, biodiversity
KWAZULU-NATAL MEC for Agriculture and Environmental Affairs Meshack Radebe has pledged more than R5 million towards the conservation of biodiversity in the province and the war against rhino poaching.
Radebe made the pledge on World Environment Day on Tuesday while delivering his department’s budget policy speech.
The budget of about R2.65 billion has set aside more than R511m for Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife.
Radebe said he was pleased to report that drastic measures had been taken by the department and Ezemvelo to tackle rhino poaching.
“A rhino security and intervention plan has been designed and adopted... (it is) a proactive strategy to curb rhino poaching through good intelligence,” Radebe said, adding that staff would be trained to combat poaching.
The plan also seeks to ensure the co-operation of the the SAPS and the NPA in all rhino poaching cases. To date, the plan has resulted in:
A 13 percent reduction in rhinos illegally hunted in KZN when compared with 2010; Eight arrests and five successful convictions; No fewer than 13 different firearms being confiscated during contact situations;
An ability to link a rhino horn to a carcass in the field by means of DNA testing;
Securing helicopter services for law enforcement operations;
Penetration of syndicates through informer networks and intelligence gathering, forcing the syndicates out of the province;
Mobilising and forging partnerships with the private sector through Project Rhino.
DA MPP and spokesman on conservation and environmental affairs Radley Keys congratulated Ezemvelo on its sterling effort against the scourge of rhino poaching. “We find the increased attack on one of our Big Five detestable,” he said.
Keys applauded Ezemvelo’s counter-attack on poaching, but urged them also to continue to root out any traitors within their own ranks who are “siding with enemy poachers”.
He said Ezemvelo also needed to be encouraged to work closely with private game ranchers, as poachers had turned their attention to these ranches, which they viewed as more penetrable than those owned by Ezemvelo.