Zimbabwe, a Southern African country nestled between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers, boasts a rich biodiversity, including 350 species of mammals, over 500 bird species, and 131 fish species. This picturesque land, characterized by grasslands, mountains, and tropical forests, was once a leading destination for wildlife-based tourism. However, political instability, drought, poverty, a growing population, and deforestation have cast a shadow over the country's wildlife and tourism industry. Conservation intervention is critical to ensuring Zimbabwe’s natural resources persist for generations to come.
The Challenge of Problem Animals
The escalating conflict between humans and wildlife is a pressing ecological and conservation issue in Zimbabwe. This conflict has far-reaching ramifications for both people and animals.
Adding to the issue of drought is the competition for resources like food and water between humans and elephants in the affected areas; the population of elephants in Zimbabwe has doubled in recent years, increasing from around 50,000 elephants to almost 100,000.
In the first quarter of this year, the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority recorded 18 deaths from conflicts between humans and wild animals such as elephants, lions, and hyenas, adding to the 300 lives lost in the past five years. In May, three people died in Kariba alone from elephant attacks, while four others were injured while escaping.
One of those killed in an encounter with an elephant was the husband of Mai Nyemba, another resident of Batonga. In May, Jonathan Nyemba went to the forest with a friend to collect firewood. “According to the friend, the elephant appeared where they were resting and started trumpeting; and they panicked and ran in different directions until my husband disappeared. They found his body two hours later,” says this mother of five.
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According to community conservationist Amos Gwema, “The main cause of human-wildlife conflict in Zimbabwe, especially in Kariba, is human population growth and encroachment into wilderness areas. As the human population increases, wilderness areas shrink, leading to increased conflict.” Climate change exacerbates these problems because both humans and elephants encroach on each other’s lands in search of food and water. Kariba is particularly characterized by erratic rainfall patterns and high temperatures; the result is a difficult environment for humans and wildlife to coexist.
“When communities are close to animal areas an abrasive relationship tends to happen. We have been having a problem with elephants because they are the ones whose number is constantly growing although this is not to say some other animals like lions and hyenas are at peace with us. We are thankful to Zimparks for erecting an electric fence, such incidents have been greatly minimised but some patches still report destruction and sometimes human life loss.
“The sad, ugly thing is that most villagers have their fields destroyed and their animals such as goats, cattle and donkeys preyed on by the wild animals are not compensated. The elephants have become so many that they have seriously affected areas that they wouldn’t normally reach. As it is, we are grappling with a serious shortage of food. There is drought but our situation is worsened by the elephants. They destroy gardens, increasing people’s vulnerability.
Councillor Brian Ncube of Nyaminyami Rural Ward 5 in Kariba told this newspaper that “cases of conflict between humans and wild animals are very common, with at least three reported in a single week.”
Culling and Its Controversies
Faced with these challenges, Zimbabwe has, at times, resorted to controversial measures like culling to manage wildlife populations. Recently, Zimbabwe and Namibia announced plans to slaughter hundreds of wild elephants and other animals to feed starving citizens during severe drought conditions. The Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority announced recently that it would allow the killing of 200 elephants so that their meat can be distributed among needy communities. Similarly, Namibia has approved of killing more than 700 wild animals (including 83 elephants, 30 hippos, 60 buffalos, 50 impalas, 300 zebras, and 100 elands, among others) as part of a plan announced several weeks ago to help the people impacted the most by severe weather conditions.
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In early June, Zimbabwe’s National Parks and Wildlife Authority (ZimParks) announced its intention to cull at least 50 elephants in the Save Valley Reserve, located in the south of the country. According to a statement from ZimParks, the area currently houses around 2,550 elephants, despite its ecological capacity of 800. This represents three times more elephants than the habitat can support.
Shortly after the announcement of these decisions, Born Free USA, along with dozens of other non-governmental organizations (NGOs), released a statement opposing the killing of these wild animals to provide meat for drought-stricken citizens.
This effort to reduce elephant numbers has been met with a strong backlash from organizations such as the Center for Natural Resources and Governance (CNRG). “Culling is a violent, short-term fix that fails to account for the complex social structures of elephant herds, threatens to traumatize surviving animals, and ultimately fails to address the root causes of habitat stress and human-elephant conflict,” the natural resources research and advocacy organization explained in a press release.
Farai Maguwu, director of the CNRG, stated that “Randomly killing elephants is ridiculous, as violent elephants are a small minority, and unless one has attacked someone, there’s no way to know which ones are aggressive and which ones aren’t [...] They could end up killing the most peaceful ones and leaving those most likely to attack humans alive. In fact, killing elephants could increase conflicts with humans, as these animals are highly intelligent and are likely to seek revenge if a member of the herd is killed,” he adds.
The decision to cull elephants would also be a major policy reversal; culling was carried out in Zimbabwe and South Africa between the mid-1960s and the mid-1990s, but was later rejected by animal advocates due to the cruelty and trauma associated with the process.
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Arguments Against Culling
While the issue of human starvation must be urgently addressed, experts have raised concerns about killing elephants and other animals not typically used for human consumption as a “solution.”
- Unsustainable Practice: According to Farai Maguwu, Executive Director at the Centre for Natural Resource Governance: “We have six to seven million people who need food aid, 200 elephants won’t change anything. We argue that the decision is unsustainable and does very little to address the drought effects or the conservation cause.”
- Economic Impact: Killing animals that help boost these countries’ tourist economies seems like an illogical “solution." Tourism is Zimbabwe’s third largest sector after mining and agriculture, playing a significant role in Zimbabwe’s economic recovery. In 2019, nature-based tourism, which includes wildlife tourism, contributed to ~70% of Zimbabwe’s total tourism receipts, totaling $878 million in USD. Therefore, maintaining the animals native to Zimbabwe and its natural spaces continues to be a key draw for tourists in the future.
- Ineffective Conservation: Culling as a conservation management strategy has proven largely ineffective; the Kruger National Park 27-year culling program removed nearly 17,000 elephants, but did not reduce their impact in the long run.
- Poaching risks: the mass killings may increase illegal poaching activity and reinvigorate the ivory trade after years of hard work to end these horrific practices, which nearly led to the extinction of elephants across Africa in the early 2000s.
Improving livelihoods and reducing conflict with wildlife in Zimbabwe, Shupa’s story - #SWMProgramme
Alternative Solutions
Experts suggest that there are other ways to address the drought and hunger conditions currently impacting Zimbabwe and Namibia. One suggestion made by conservationists is to drill more boreholes (deep, narrow holes made into the ground to locate water) that both humans and wildlife could access in the affected areas to increase water availability. Birth control has also been used to control breeding in wild herds, though the effects in larger populations have yet to be explored. Another possible solution would be to relocate elephants to national parks with fewer animals rather than killing them. This would alleviate competition for water resources while preserving the animals’ lives.
Another option, Gwema explains, would be “to relocate elephants from highly concentrated areas to less populated ones,” which could be, in his opinion, “an effective solution.” “Furthermore, some innovative projects, such as chili guns and beehive fences, can deter elephants from invading human settlements,” he adds.
“Instead of culling animals, the government could consider selling elephants to countries that don’t have elephants or increasing hunting quotas,” suggests Gwema. “This strategy would not only contain the number of animals but would also generate revenue for conservation efforts.”
We, along with dozens of other animal advocates, wildlife trade experts, and conservation scientists, urge the governments of Zimbabwe and Namibia to withdraw plans to cull elephants and other wildlife and explore these and other compassionate alternatives rather than turning to slaughter. We also call on donor governments and agencies to implement effective and sustainable measures to ensure food security and human-wildlife coexistence, while also protecting increasingly threatened wildlife populations.
Translocation Efforts
In response to the drought, Zimbabwe has also undertaken significant translocation efforts to move wildlife from parched areas to regions with more resources. Zimbabwe has begun moving more than 2,500 wild animals from a southern reserve to one in the country's north to rescue them from drought, as the ravages of climate change replace poaching as the biggest threat to wildlife.
About 400 elephants, 2,000 impalas, 70 giraffes, 50 buffaloes, 50 wildebeest, 50 zebras, 50 elands, 10 lions and a pack of 10 wild dogs are among the animals being moved from Zimbabwe's Save Valley Conservancy to three conservancies in the north - Sapi, Matusadonha and Chizarira - in one of southern Africa's biggest live animal capture and translocation exercises.
"Project Rewild Zambezi," as the operation is called, is moving the animals to an area in the Zambezi River valley to rebuild the wildlife populations there. It's the first time in 60 years that Zimbabwe has embarked on such a mass internal movement of wildlife.
This time it's the lack of water that has made it necessary to move wildlife as their habitat has become parched by prolonged drought, said Tinashe Farawo, spokesman for the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority. The parks agency issued permits to allow the animals to be moved to avert "a disaster from happening," said Farawo.
"We are doing this to relieve pressure. For years we have fought poaching and just as we are winning that war, climate change has emerged as the biggest threat to our wildlife," Farawo told The Associated Press. "Many of our parks are becoming overpopulated and there is little water or food. The animals end up destroying their own habitat, they become a danger unto themselves and they encroach neighboring human settlements for food resulting in incessant conflict," he said.
IFAW’s Conservation Efforts
IFAW has dedicated significant resources to wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe, recognising the country’s unique biodiversity and the urgent need to protect its range of thriving ecosystems. Some of our key initiatives include:
- Removing snares around Hwange National Park: As a direct result of the team’s dedication and hard work, the number of snares found in the area plummeted by more than 80% in under a year.
- Providing bicycles to safeguard students from wildlife attacks: In 2024, a joint initiative between IFAW and ZimParks called Riding for Conservation and Education provided 100 bicycles to students attending schools in communities around Hwange National Park.
- Protecting lions and cattle with innovative bomas: The project aims to scale up current human-wildlife conflict management activities by establishing an early warning system for the primary response team. In addition, the project seeks to establish predator-proof bomas to help mitigate livestock predation by lions.
- Opening Makona ranger base: The base, which opened in April 2023, operates as the first modern-era ranger station in Hwange National Park. As well as supporting the prevention of wildlife crime, Makona safeguards local communities and provides accommodation for more than 24 rangers and their families.
- Training and equipping rangers in Panda Masuie reserve: IFAW trains and equips rangers in their efforts to secure Panda Masuie by tracking the movements of poachers and reporting sightings of rare and endangered species.
- Establishing human-wildlife conflict primary response teams: With generous financial support from the Australian Embassy’s Direct Aid Program (DAP), in partnership with ZimParks, and with the cooperation of local authorities including Hwange, Tsholotsho, and Lupane Rural District Councils, as well as traditional leaders, IFAW is currently undertaking a project to elevate existing human-wildlife conflict management initiatives.
- Supporting conservation through tourism infrastructure: As part of the ongoing restoration of Hwange National Park, IFAW and ZimParks announced the construction of a new multi-purpose complex at the park’s main entrance point in December 2023.
Zimbabwe's Unique Wildlife
As one of the most biodiverse countries in Africa, Zimbabwe boasts a unique array of wildlife. It is among the few countries in sub-Saharan Africa with large populations of lions, leopards, and Cape buffalos, as well as an increasing rhino population.
Zimbabwe, located in southern Africa, is home to the world's fourth-largest population of black rhinos, following South Africa, Namibia, and Kenya. The country is estimated to have approximately 616 black rhinos and 417 white rhinos, making it a crucial stronghold for both species. The presence of these iconic animals highlights the conservation efforts and natural habitat suitability present in Zimbabwe.
Some species of the elusive pangolin-the most trafficked mammal in the world-can also be found in Zimbabwe. These nocturnal creatures play a vital role in the ecosystem because they control insect populations, but pangolins are critically endangered due to the illegal wildlife trade.
Alongside 627 bird species, 270 mammal species, 197 reptile species, 120 amphibian species, and 145 fish species, Zimbabwe boasts an impressive 6,398 native or naturalised plant species.
Zimbabwe’s protected area network is home to most of the country’s biodiversity and covers 106,837 square kilometres (41,269 square miles), equating to 27.2% of Zimbabwe’s land mass.
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