Govt To Kill 200 Elephants To Feed Hungry Citizens

The government of Zimbabwe has approved the killing of 200 elephants to help feed citizens facing severe hunger caused by a prolonged drought.

This decision is part of the government’s efforts to address the ongoing food crisis in the East African country.

In addition to providing food for those in need, the government explained that the culling will also help reduce the dangers posed by elephants to local communities. The animals have been causing harm and even deaths among residents.

Tinashe Farawo, a spokesperson for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority, confirmed this on Monday in a statement to CNN. “We are targeting to cull 200 elephants,” Farawo said.

He further explained, “The animals are causing a lot of havoc in communities, killing people. Last week, we lost a woman in the northern part of the country who was killed by an elephant. The previous week, the same thing happened. So, this is also a way of controlling the situation.”

Local reports indicate that more than 30 people have died this year alone due to conflicts between humans and wildlife in Zimbabwe.

Farawo also mentioned, according to Reuters, that the culling is part of an effort to ease overcrowding in Zimbabwe’s parks, which are designed to support only about 55,000 elephants. However, the country is home to over 84,000 elephants. “It’s an effort to decongest the parks in the face of drought. The numbers we are talking about—200 elephants—are just a drop in the ocean when you consider we have over 84,000 elephants,” he said.

According to the United Nations, more than seven million people in Zimbabwe are at risk of extreme hunger, making the country one of the world’s “hunger hotspots.” A UN report from August noted that food insecurity in Zimbabwe has worsened due to historic droughts caused by the El Niño weather pattern.

Zimbabwe’s decision to cull elephants follows a similar move by Namibia, which also approved elephant culling to address food shortages and prevent wildlife-human conflicts as drought continues to affect the region.

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