Anti-poaching patrol camp in Etosha National Park to be inaugurated
The Ministry of Environment and Tourism, through the Protected Areas System Strengthening (PASS) Project, with support from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), constructed an anti-poaching patrol camp at Skopiun Bult, in the Etosha National Park.
The Environment Ministry’s, Public Relations Officer, Romeo Muyunda said this week the Ministry received a donation of five million Japanese Yen (US$44,000) from Yahoo Japan Corporation for the construction of the camp which will be inaugurated on 4 November.
UNDP Namibia signed the Memorandum of Understanding of the donation on 9 March 2017 with Yahoo Japan Corporation, one of the leading media house in Japan, which materialized UNDP Namibia’s first global Public Private Partnership. Such a donation was made in response to the increasing poaching cases of rhinos and elephants in Namibia, which the MET has to deal with on almost a daily basis.
According to Muyunda, the anti-poaching patrol camp consists of the following: Operation centre, observation tower, solar system, sleeping unit, ablution facility and water provision.
“Building upon the Environment Ministry’s achievement through PASS, the new patrol camp is expected to make a significant difference in the fight against poaching. The camp will house game patrol units, rangers, and community members who participates in anti-poaching patrol activities,” he added.
Since 2014, Namibia, with the support of UNDP and funding from the Global Environment
Facility have been spearheading a four-year anti-poaching project called PASS in the country’s 21 protected areas, including Etosha National Park, where it helped provide training and equipment to game patrols.
The camp will be inaugarated by the Minister of Environment, Pohamba Shifeta, while United nations Representative, Japanese Ambassador and the ministry’s Permanent Secretary as well as media will be present at the event.
