Hundreds of hippos are stranded and trapped in the mud waters along the Chobe and Linyanti rivers in the Zambezi Region.

The river received low rainfall this year compared to previous years.

Most parts of the Chobe and Linyanti rivers bordering Botswana and Namibia's Zambezi Region have started drying up due to insufficient rainfall.

In previous years, the Chobe River got inflows of flood water; this year, the situation is different. 

The Salambala Community Conservancy Manager, Fabian Libanda, says the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism has so far drilled a borehole at Rungara in the Mutikitila area.

Because Chobe is a shared river, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism has joined efforts with the Wildlife Department and Police of Botswana to ensure that the hippos are supplied with water from the borehole using solar panels and generators.

Libanda is appealing to friends in conservation to assist with the drilling of more boreholes along the Linyanti Chobe river while there are still swamps of water to preserve the lives of the hippos and crocodiles.

Elephants, zebras, buffaloes, waterbucks, impalas, warthogs, and many other animals are equally affected.

Libanda is urging fishermen in the different areas of the conservancy to ensure that when they go fishing, they avoid dumping unwanted fish nets as they pose a danger to wildlife.

The Field Officer of Salambala Conservancy, James Talubengwa, is worried that the Conservancy game guards deployed there to pump water day and night have no sufficient resources, including food rations, to sustain themselves.

He is calling on all stakeholders to assist wherever they can.