The Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, has urged the tourism industry and reservation services to up their service delivery to grow the industry.
 
Shifeta said this during the opening of the 2024 Namibia Tourism Expo.
 
Pohamba says tourism-related industries such as accommodation establishments, transport, food and beverage services, and travel agencies cannot afford to offer poor services. 
 
He says the expo is an opportunity for exhibitors to showcase their products and increase tourism activities.

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 Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism is expected to spend about N$47 million on renovating entrance gates and sanitation facilities at the Etosha and Hardap National Parks. 

The gates receiving face lifts are the Anderson, Von Lindqeuist, and King Nehale Lya Mpingana gates. 

Additionally, eight sanitation facilities at the park will also be upgraded to "comfort stops," comprising toilets, picnic areas, information displays, viewing platforms, and adequate parking areas. 

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism says Germany's decision to restrict or ban the import of hunting trophies could harm Namibia's conservation efforts. 

Hunters from Germany and elsewhere flock to Namibia during hunting season to do trophy hunting, spending top dollar in search of a prized trophy. 

Once the animals are hunted, the taxidermists get involved to prepare the trophy before it is exported to the hunter. 

The body of a villager from Nongozi was retrieved from a swamp in the Nkasa-Rupara National Park in the Zambezi Region on Tuesday. 

The 29-year-old  Samupwa Lubinda's body was already in a state of early decomposition when it was retrieved. 

According to a police report, Lubinda drowned during a fishing excursion with two other men in the park on Sunday.

It is alleged that when they were busy removing fish from the nets, they saw anti-poaching officials and jumped into the water.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism is currently conducting an assessment to determine the extent of rhino poaching. In light of the recent poaching incidents in the park, the ministry has also requested an urgent high-level meeting with the security cluster.

To date, a total of 28 rhinos have been poached in Namibia. Out of these, 19 were poached in the Etosha National Park, while the remaining 10 were discovered during dehorning operations throughout the month of March.

President Nangolo Mbumba has commended the Namibian Exile Kids Association (NEKA) for continuing to be the voice of the children born in exile at the height of the liberation struggle.

Dr. Mbumba, who is also the patron of NEKA, says the association has managed to bring together members to promote the welfare and preserve the cultural heritage of the struggle through networking and information sharing.

Environment, Forestry, and Tourism Executive Director Teofilus Nghitila says they are working on making Namibia attractive again for international conferences and other meetings.

Nghitila made these remarks at the ministry's planning session for their quarter review and compilation of the Annual Management Plan for 2024–2025.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism still needs to revive the tourism sector despite encouraging statistics from the sector.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism spokesperson, Romeo Muyunda, says the Ministry’s policy provides for the destruction of an animal that has killed a person. Muyunda’s remarks come after an Angolan national was fatally attacked by an elephant last night at Otjorute Village in the Ruacana area of Uukolonkadhi Conservancy.

Muyunda says the reason for the destruction of an animal that has killed a person is that such an animal may have lost fear of people, and based on its current aggression, it may cause more damage and harm. 

The Minister of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform, Carl Schlettwein, said the water reuse method is an approach that can be taken in Kunene to address the water shortage in the region.

Schlettwein said this at the joint commemoration of World Wetlands Day and World Water Day in Opuwo.

Wetlands are ecosystems that contain water permanently or seasonally.

World Wetlands Day 2024 calls for attention to the interconnectedness between wetlands and various aspects of human existence.