Citizens encouraged to work with government to reverse the current trends of poaching
Citizens have been urged to join hands with the government to reverse the current trends of poaching, an official said as the country joined the rest of the world in celebrating World Wildlife Life Day on Thursday.
The theme for commemorating World Wildlife Day 22 is which seeks to draw attention to the conservation status of some of the critically endangered species of fauna and flora.
This year’s theme, “recovering key species for ecosystem restoration” places emphasis on the preservation of critically endangered wildlife species, a Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism spokesperson, Romeo Muyunda said Thursday in a statement.
“One of the country’s biggest challenges to our conservation is wildlife crime, particularly poaching of high valued species such as rhinos, elephants and pangolins,” he added.
Muyunda also said deforestation and unsustainable land use on the other hand also threaten the country’s endangered plant species.
“In accordance with this, we urge further that Namibians refrain from undertaking unsustainable activities that have the potential to degrade our environment and destabilize our ecosystems such as deforestation, sand mining and desertification,” he added.
World Wildlife Day has now become the most important global annual event dedicated to wildlife. The day was proclaimed in 2013, at the 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly and is designed for raising awareness of the world’s wild animals and plants.
