1. Namibia: Conservation Could be Engine For Growth

Windhoek - Top business personalities and conservation experts from 26 countries are gathering in Namibia this weekend to discuss links between business expertise and environmental projects in Africa to unlock the potential of protected areas for soc

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2. UNEP/AEWA: International Migratory Waterbird Conference

Over 150 representatives of government and non‐governmental organisations as well as waterbird experts from 80 countries will meet in Madagascar to discuss urgent conservation responses necessary to reverse the declines of many migratory waterbir

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3. Kenya: National Park Project Set to Displace 1,000

Nairobi - About 1,000 residents of the Kaputiei plains in Kajiado may be displaced to create animal pathways in the Nairobi National Park. But the Government has said that this plan will only go on if the local community approves it and fair com

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4. MALI: Saving elephants, saving communities

BAMAKO - Implementers of an international project to help endangered elephants in Mali want to prove that by doing so, they can also help local communities adapt to climate change in the Sahel. The Malian government lists elephants in Gourma in

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5. Kenya: Disaster in the Wild As Poachers Go for Tusks

Nairobi - Poachers are at it again; killing elephants in national parks and game reserves to feed an ivory demand in China, the world's most populous country. So far this year, according to the Kenya Wildlife Service, 46 elephants have fallen prey

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6. Kenya: Poaching Stealthily Stealing Our Heritage

Nairobi - For close to a decade now, Kenya has been in the forefront in crusading against the push by a few countries seeking to have a worldwide ban on trade in ivory lifted. As a country, Kenya has had a chilling experience with poaching which just

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7. South Africa: Saving the Cape Baboon

The chacma baboon (Papio Ursinus), also known as the Cape Baboon, lived in Cape Town’s surrounding mountains long before its human neighbours took up residence in the area. Conflict escalated as urban development invaded baboons’ habita

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8. Namibia: Ministry Defends Trophy-Hunting

Windhoek - THE shooting of three elephant bulls in the Kunene Region will not put the desert-adapted elephant population at risk, says Environment Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah. According to her, the elephant population in the region is health

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9. Kenya: Nine plans approved to help increase forest cover

The Government has approved nine participatory forest management plans in an effort to increase forest cover from 1.8 per cent to 10 per cent. The plans have been prepared by various communities neighbouring major forests that have been degraded,

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10. Jane Goodall's famous research facility for chimpanzees in Africa now open to USC research students

Rob O’Malley sat hunched in the middle of an African jungle made famous by renowned primatologist Jane Goodall. As he furtively watched the object of his research – a group of chimpanzees – O’Malley heard a cough and disc

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11. Ghana elephants show U.N. deforestation headache

AFIASO - Rising elephant numbers in a protected forest park in Ghana are angering farmers whose crops are being raided in an unwanted side-effect of a plan to slow deforestation. Locals in Afiaso, a village of 620 people in southern Ghana with n

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12. Ivory Poachers Decimate Congo Elephant Population

KINSHASA - Poachers in Congo have killed a fifth of the elephants in Africa's oldest national park this year as China buys more ivory, the park's director said on Friday.   Rwandan rebels have killed seven Savannah elephants in the past 10

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13. Uganda: NFA plants trees amidst protests from encroachers

THE National Forestry authority (NFA) has continued with the restoration of Wambabya forest despite resistance from the local people in Hoima district. In a recent clash outside the forest reserve, a group of local people armed with arrows and sp

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14. Cameroon: Poaching, Poverty, Big Problems in Southeast - US Ambassador

In her first whirlwind trip to the Southeast of Cameroon, US Ambassador, Janet Garvey, garnered enough knowledge to conclude that "this is a wonderful landscape and a groundbreaking program." It stands to reason, for the Southeast

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15. South Africa: Plan Launched to Save Diminishing Seabird Population

Somerset West - The accidental killing of over 28 Albatross and Petrel species of seabird by local fisheries has prompted the launch of a new plan of action to help preserve the vulnerable birds. The Department of Environmental Affairs and Touri

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16. Zimbabwe: Three Rhinos Killed in Gonarezhou

Harare - THREE black rhinoceros carcasses were found last week in a state of decomposition in the Gonarezhou National Park. Masvingo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Phibeon Nyambo confirmed receiving the reports, but said they were still

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17. Namibia: Government Bans Ekipa Sales

Windhoek - THE Ministry of Environment and Tourism has placed a moratorium on the sale of carved ivory products with effect from September 1 as a measure to control trade in ivory amulets known as omakipa. The decision was announced in Windhoek ye

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18. Namibia: Elephant Shot Dead 'For Braai' in Front of Tourists

AN elephant was shot dead - allegedly for a local chief's "braaivleis party" - in front of several tourists in the Bwabwata Park in the Caprivi Region last week, causing many of the shocked visitors to cut short their tours. Andrew Mombe

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19. Rwanda: Fire Guts Akagera National Park

Kigali - A fire that broke out last Friday at about 3 p.m and lasted for close to 38 hours before it was contained on the evening of Sunday, August 17, gutted close to 107 square kilometres in the Akagera National Park. This was revealed yesterday

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20. Botswana: Ban On Lion Hunting Still in Force

Gaborone - Lion hunting in Botswana remains prohibited 12 months after government decided to stop awarding hunting licenses last year. Dr Trevor Mmopelwa, the Director of Wildlife in the Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism did not say wh

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21. Mengi takes swipe at rich countries on climate change

IPP Limited Executive Chairman Reginald Mengi has said poor countries are economic victims of climate change, and are made to benefit rich countries. He made the remarks on Sunday in Dar es Salaam when closing the International Students` Week in

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22. The Ardvaark’s Happy Return

The ardvaark was one of the first, but other species of bird and animal have since returned to a once bare and desolate corner of Tigray in northern Ethiopia. Decades of farmer neglect in an already harsh environment had left the land devastated

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23. Zimbabwe: Elephants Slaughtered At Alarming Rate

Zimbabwe's once thriving wildlife and tourism industry is under serious threat as authorities continue to kill elephants and other animals at an alarming rate. Johnny Rodrigues, the chairman for the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, said the Depar

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24. South Africa: Experts - It's Not Cruel to Collar Baboons

Cape Town - Tracking collars placed on some of the Peninsula's baboons may cause the animals some inconvenience, but the conservation gains from invaluable information collected far outweigh any disadvantages, say the researchers involved. And the

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25. Cameroon: Poaching Blamed On Limited Legal Knowledge

Buea - The illegal exploitation of protected animal species and other forest resources in Cameroon has been blamed on poor understanding of legal instruments governing the sector. This observation was made at a workshop organised by the Ministry o

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26. CAMEROON: Operation Green Sahel Resumes

GAROUA - "I have come to plant trees -- that is why I have left my jacket and tie in Yaoundé" declared Cameroon's Minister of Forest and Wildlife, Elvis Ngolle Ngolle, as he launched the tree planting at a small village near the town

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27. Kenya: KWS Team Moves 30 Giraffes

Nairobi - The Kenya Wildlife Service is trying out a new, cheaper method of capturing and transferring wildlife. The method, referred to as funnel-shaped mass capture, was on trial last week when KWS moved 30 giraffes from the Aberdare Country Clu

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28. Uganda: Wildlife Authority Sued Over Six Gorilla Permits

A protracted dispute between the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), tour operators and lodge owners in the Kisoro area has been taken to the high court. The rift -- over distribution of tracking permits for the Nkuringo family of gorillas -- arises

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29. New Bird Species Discovered In Gabon

Scientists at the Smithsonian Institution have discovered a new species of bird in Gabon, Africa, that was, until now, unknown to the scientific community. The newly found olive-backed forest robin (Stiphrornis pyrrholaemus) was named by the scien

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30. Zimbabwe National Parks Authorize Shooting of Elephants

In the past week, we have received numerous very disturbing reports from tourists and locals alike regarding the wholesale killing of wildlife, in particular, elephants. According to sources, the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Managemen

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31. Uganda: 100,000 trees planted countrywide

A total of 100,000 species of tree seedlings have been planted in six districts countrywide in a move to mitigate the impact of climate change. The Ministry of Water and Environment contributed Shs43.8 million under Farm Income Enhancement Proje

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32. Namibia: Rare Desert Lioness Shot Dead

Windhoek - A desert-adopted  lioness wearing a GPS tracking collar, which had been observed and studied for nine years, was shot dead at Bergsig in the Kunene Region in July. A tour operator at Walvis Bay, Fanie du Preez, says the lioness was

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33.  Poaching and deforestation threaten Ugandan chimps

 Kampala - Ugandan chimpanzee Zakayo, the star attraction at the Uganda Wildlife Education Center (UWEC) near Kampala, is scheduled to cut a cake on Friday as he turns 44. The ageing primate, who will share a birthday drink with well- wishers,

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34. Uganda: Country 's Oldest Chimpanzee Celebrates 44th Birthday

The Uganda Wildlife Education Centre (Uwec) Entebbe will this Friday host well-wishers to a lavish birthday party, probably not seen in the recent past. It will not be the birthday party of any political or bureaucratic bigwigs, but Zakayo, the

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35. IUCN and African Development Bank join forces for Africa

IUCN has teamed up with the African Development Bank to work together on conservation and sustainable development projects. Both organizations signed a memorandum of understanding on the 12 August, 2008, to launch joint action to use the conservat

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36. Kenya: Alarm raised over planned soda ash plant

The proposed soda ash factory on Lake Natron’s shores is feared to have a negative impact not only on the ecosystem of Tanzania but that of Kenya as well. The construction of the plant in Tanzania also poses a threat to the population of fla

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37. Uganda: Museveni Opposed to Elgon Forest Giveaway

Kampala - President Yoweri Museveni has rejected a government's plan to reduce forest cover on Mt. Elgon. He said the plan should be suspended until proper verification is done by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA). The Preside

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38. Congo: Govt Appoints Belgian Prince to Tame Gorilla Park

Congo has appointed a Belgian prince to fight corruption and poaching in Africa's oldest national park after rare gorillas were butchered there last year, Congo's environment minister has said. Police arrested the previous Congolese head of the hu

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39. Conservation Can Only Succeed If It Works For People

The Director General of World Wide FundLeape_james_p for Nature, WWF International, Jim Leape, has said conservation can only succeed if it works for people. Leape was speaking while on a visit to the Central African Sub region. In this exclusive i

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40. More than 100,000 rare gorillas found in Congo

An estimated 125,000 Western lowland gorillas are living in a swamp in equatorial Africa, researchers reported Tuesday, double the number of the endangered primates thought to survive worldwide. Forest clearings draw large numbers of Western lowla

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41. 'Net losses' for South African seabirds

A study of trawl fishing in South Africa suggests that around 18,000 seabirds may be killed annually in this fishery, highlighting trawl fisheries as a major threat to seabirds, especially several species of albatross already facing a risk of extin

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42. Namibia: African Wild Dog Faces Extinction

Namibia: African Wild Dog Faces Extinction Windhoek - Namibia's African wild dog population is threatened to the extent that it would require the establishment of a second viable population to ensure its survival. With sightings only occurrin

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43. East Africa: U.S. Brokers in Eco-Deal With Rwanda, DR Congo, Uganda

Kigali - The U.S has brokered a conservation deal in Greater Virunga Landscape shared by the DR Congo (DRC), Rwanda and Uganda. Under the U.S initiative, the conservation agreements were recently signed in western Rwanda by Rwanda's trade and indu

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44. Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force: Conservancy Animals Shot

On Friday, 25th July, a Zimbabwean Air Force helicopter marked with a red cross was seen hovering around Midlands Black Rhino Conservancy and shots were heard.   The following day, the helicopter returned and a kudu bull was shot. When the con

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45. MADAGASCAR: Balancing poor communities and conservation

TOLIARA - Madagascar is entering uncharted waters in its bid to implement ambitious projects in partnership with poor local communities that will more than triple existing conservation areas. The Indian Ocean island is renowned for its unique and

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46. TACUGAMA HOSTS 2008 PASA MANAGERS MEETING

We had the honour of hosting the 2008 PASA management meeting at the beginning of April. It is a moving experience to have all the African sanctuary managers reunited in the same room. There is always so much information to share and things to

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47. Congo Launches Review of Logging Contracts

KINSHASA - Congo, home to the world's second largest tropical forest, launched a review of all timber contracts on Wednesday in an effort to clean up a business rife with corruption and to recoup millions of dollars in lost taxes. The World

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48. Namibia: Last desert elephants in firing line

SERIOUS alarm has been raised over official plans to shoot three of Namibia's rare desert-adapted elephant bulls in the Kunene Region as trophies for big-game hunters, which conservationists fear could cause a collapse in their dwindling numbers.

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49. Zimbabwe: Air force killing protected wildlife

HARARE - Men in army uniform carrying AK47s were spotted in an area where a kudu bull was shot, according to a report from the Midlands Black Rhino Conservancy. On Friday, July 25, a military helicopter was observed hovering over one position a

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50. Mangrove conservation Policy underway in Sierra Leone

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry with the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, in collaboration with the West African Mangrove Initiative project (WAMI), commenced deliberation on the formulation of a Mangrove conservation policy for S

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