Erindi dismisses elephant ‘offer’ - by Chrispin Inambao

From The New Era


WINDHOEK – Gert Joubert, co-owner of Erindi Game Reserve, has dismissed claims by a Ministry of Environment and Tourism official that the ministry previously made an offer to the private game reserve for it to catch 200 elephants.

A row erupted recently pitting Erindi against the environment ministry in the wake of the ministry’s refusal to grant permission for Erindi to alternatively import up to 200 elephants from a private reserve in South Africa after the ministry allegedly steadfastly thwarted its efforts to catch and translocate 200 indigenous elephants.

Last week, a senior ministry official who requested anonymity on grounds the issue has been referred to the government attorney, claimed that though the ministry declined Erindi’s request to catch tourist-friendly elephants from Etosha, it was given an offer to catch elephants in areas where conflict prevails between communities and roaming herds of elephants.

The source had said these areas include Caprivi where elephant numbers have swelled to 5 000 causing tremendous ecological strain and heavily depleting the fragile environment.

But in a letter he faxed to New Era yesterday, Joubert dismissed this as untrue saying the furthest Erindi Game Reserve ever proceeded with the ministry “was a vague discussion of possible sources of elephants” with the then permanent secretary Dr Malan Lindeque and Ben Beytell, the director of parks and wildlife management.

Joubert again challenged the ministry to produce evidence that it granted Erindi permission to capture elephants from Mamili Game Park in Caprivi and from Mudumu Game Reserve, and that such evidence should indicate Erindi did not want elephants from these areas.

Joubert yesterday sent New Era correspondence between himself and the ministry in which he says: “It has been the most frustrating three years of negotiations with a Government Department that I have ever come across in my business career, without any results.”

He says in his correspondence that his presence in Namibia is to create a world-class game reserve that subsequently will create more jobs and help alleviate poverty.

“The assistance from your department to say the least, is very disappointing,” he states.

If permission is to be granted the private reserve would catch and transport the jumbos at own cost utilizing the Erindi game capture team under the supervision of world-renowned experts Dr Douw Grobler and Dr H.Q Reuter.

When contacted for comment, an official in the office of the ministry’s permanent secretary Dr Kalumbi Shangula referred all inquiries to the directorate of scientific services.

But both the director of scientific services Rwisa Mupetami and the deputy Kenneth Uiseb were unavailable for comment – and thus New Era was unable to get comment.

The reason Erindi wants to capture so many elephants is two-fold: to boost eco-tourism and to harness these beasts’ massive appetite to curtail bush encroachment.

Boasting a staggering array of game species such as lion, rhino, cheetah, wild dog, leopard, hippo, crocodile, the 71 000 hectare reserve last year opened a N$20 million eco-tourism camp that houses up to 70 guests and employs at least 150 Namibians.

Though Erindi’s efforts to get 200 elephants in its quest to decongest parks overpopulated with elephants, such as Etosha that now has about 2000, have for now been thwarted the reserve in the past successfully reintroduced lions and other species from Etosha.