Royal Rhino
  • Home
  • Organic Wines
    • Cream Liqueur
  • Conservation
    • Rhino Facts
    • Donate
    • Raise Funds
  • Shop
  • Contact
Select Page

Technology, alliances and focus could turn the tide against rhino poaching in Kruger

by royalrhino | Aug 24, 2017 | Conservation |

Technology, alliances and focus could turn the tide against rhino poaching in Kruger

An integrated approach in the fight against rhino poaching, seems to be paying off in the Kruger National Park. This focused strategy includes creating close alliances in Swaziland and Mozambique, involving local communities and employing cutting-edge technology.

Rhino poaching in the Kruger National Park (KNP) has decreased by 23% in 2016 and by a further 34% in the first six months of 2017, as recently announced by Minister of Environmental Affairs Edna Molewa.

Last year, 354 rhino carcasses were found in the park compared to this year’s 243 carcasses in the same period. Although every loss is devastating, the dedicated anti-poaching efforts within the KNP, as well as measures to engage regional, national and international stakeholders, seem to be paying off.

Johan Jooste, a decorated former army major general who heads the KNP’s anti-poaching task team, has emphasised since his appointment in 2013 that only 20% of the answer lies in fighting fire with fire.

Elaborating on his watch as custodian of the KNP’s rhinos, he recalls the three year plan that was implemented from 2013 to 2015, including establishing a well-trained ranger corps, an air-wing and a canine unit.

“In 2015 we phased in sophisticated technology, which included surveillance, early-warning detection and tracking to make detection and intervention possible. These were all force-multipliers to increase the effectiveness of existing measures.

“It took the best of three years to establish a world-class anti-poaching unit, and adding infrastructure and technology. A big part of that was the joint operation centre in Skukuza, which has been in full operation for the past two and a half years.”

Jooste emphasises that although successes have been achieved, it’s still no victory. Tackling the problem at a strategic level with the help of regional, national and international role players, community ownership and consumer management are essential elements in the pursuit of such victory.

“That is why we have established close alliances in Swaziland, Mozambique and with all the communities around us. This has worked very well. Four years ago 75% of the poaching came from Mozambique; now it is only 25%. We work with other governments, who use similar training and equipment. It’s called the Lowveld Lebombo Environmental Protection Alliance.”

As a result of this integrated approach, in the first six months of 2017 more perpetrators were arrested outside than inside the KNP’s borders.

Regarding community ownership, Jooste says although a lot of awareness about poaching is raised, communities must benefit more from conservation by means of rural development. “That is why we need the involvement of more state departments than law enforcement, including social development and the ‘softer departments’. We will have to accelerate this aspect to establish firm and constructive relationships with communities in which they take co-ownership of anti-poaching efforts.

“The other aspect is consumer management – bringing about behavioural change among consumers – which is going to take many years. The two strategic issues in this regard is firstly the collapsing of crime networks, syndicates and smuggling chains. We have to form alliances with other intelligence agencies to improve investigative capacity and intelligence gathering.

“Secondly, we have to keep on working with and exerting pressure on consumer countries like China and Vietnam.”

According to Jooste, the KNP has benefitted from excellent co-operation with, direct involvement in and financial support to the tune of millions of rands from NGOs, other countries, the KNP Honorary Rangers and many others.

“We are thankful that we can show results. We are committed to this marathon we all have to run over the long haul,” says the man under whose watch more than a thousand poachers have thus far been arrested.

Recent Posts

  • All revealed on the war on rhino horns in award-winning documentary
  • Finally, a strong decline in rhino poaching.
  • What 2018 Meant to Rhinos

Categories

  • Awareness
  • Conservation
  • Dr Ian Player
  • Fundraising
  • General
  • Rhino species
  • Science
  • Trade in rhino horn
  • Uncategorized
  • Wine range

  

By Van Loveren Wines.


DRINK RESPONSIBLY. NOT FOR SALE TO PERSONS UNDER THE AGE OF 18.

Pages

  • Home
  • Organic Wines
    • Cream Liqueur
  • Conservation
    • Rhino Facts
    • Donate
    • Raise Funds
  • Shop
  • Contact

Get In Touch

  • PO BOX 19
    Robertson
    South Africa
    6767
  • 023-615 1505
  • info@vanloveren.co.za

Privacy Policy

Recent Posts

  • All revealed on the war on rhino horns in award-winning documentary
  • Finally, a strong decline in rhino poaching.
  • What 2018 Meant to Rhinos
  • Young Capetonian wins International Eco-Hero award
  • The 3 most promising solutions to rhino poaching
  • Hope for the northern white rhino subspecies: rhino impregnated in California
By continuing the use of our Website, you are explicitly and actively consenting to our processing of your personal information as per our Privacy Policy.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

Performance

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

Advertisement

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

Others

Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

SAVE & ACCEPT
x