In a move to support farmers affected by human-wildlife conflict, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism has announced an increase in the offset payment for cattle losses under the Human-Wildlife Conflict Self-Reliance Scheme.

The compensation will rise from N$5,000 to N$8,000 effective from the first of next month.

Making the announcement in the National Assembly, Minister Pohamba Shifeta emphasised the need for collective action in managing human-wildlife conflict, which he said is a complex issue that affects both rural communities and conservation efforts.

Namibia's rich wildlife, he said, plays a vital role in attracting thousands of tourists, contributing to economic growth and employment.

"The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism is cognisant of numerous challenges that our rural communities and farmers are experiencing as a result of human- wildlife conflict. In this regard, the Ministry continues to invest a lot of resources in community extension work with the aim of imparting knowledge on how to mitigate and deal with cases of human-wildlife conflict and on specific mitigation, preventative, and protective measures to reduce the conflict."

He further said that through mitigation, monitoring and stakeholder capacity-building, the government seeks to reduce losses while promoting self-reliance among affected farmers.

Acknowledging the financial burden of fully implementing mitigation measures, the Minister stressed that the self-reliance scheme was introduced as an alternative to traditional compensation models, which have proved problematic in other countries. 

The scheme not only offsets losses from livestock and crop damage but also provides financial assistance to families who lose loved ones in wildlife encounters, as well as to individuals injured by wild animals.

"It is government policy that introduced this self-reliance scheme because our investigation on compensation schemes implemented elsewhere has proved to be very problematic and open to abuse. There is a need to find other means to offset the losses caused by wildlife and, at the same time, build the self-reliance of farmers. There are moral obligations on the government to support communities and farmers finding themselves in such human-wildlife conflict, especially in rural communities."

While the cattle loss compensation has increased, the Minister confirmed that all other payments under the scheme will remain as adjusted in September 2024.