Report: Rhino Poaching on The Rise in South Africa

Facts

• The South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment said on Tuesday that the number of rhinos poached in the country had risen by more than 10% in 2023 compared with 2022.¹
• Last year, poachers reportedly killed 499 rhinos — 406 on state properties and 93 on privately owned parks, reserves, and farms — an increase of 51 from the previous year.²
• The most targeted rhinos were at the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in the KwaZulu-Natal province, which lost 307 rhinos to illegal hunting in 2023 — representing over 60% of the national poaching losses.³
• Meanwhile, the number of rhinos killed in South Africa's Kruger National Park, which had been a hotspot for rhino poachers for over 15 years, fell 37% in 2023.⁴
• According to Environment Minister Barbara Creecy, law enforcement arrested 49 suspected poachers in KwaZulu-Natal alone last year, while courts across the country convicted 45 poachers and hunters.⁵
• South Africa is home to about 2K black rhinos and nearly 13K white rhinos, classified as 'critically endangered' and 'near threatened,' respectively.⁶

Sources: ¹Save The Rhino, ²NBC, ³Bloomberg, ⁴France 24, ⁵DW and ⁶BBC News.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by BBC News. Though the country experienced high losses to poaching last year, South Africa is still home to more rhinos than any other nation — a result of combined public-private partnership efforts. Due to tightened security, poaching groups are struggling to target rhinos in the Kruger, while the government has allocated $2.1M to improving fencing in the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi. The authorities aren't dropping their guard — from extensive de-horning programs to acquiring surveillance helicopters, South Africa is making a comprehensive effort to protect its precious rhinos.
• Narrative B, as provided by DW. South Africa has recorded a significant uptick in rhino poaching despite the government's best efforts. Because rhino poaching often involves international criminal syndicates that smuggle rhino horns to Asia for colossal profit, poaching in the country, as well as in the continent, will continue to increase unless the upper echelons of global illicit networks are destroyed through a coordinated multi-agency response. Law enforcement efforts alone can't address the complex social and economic drivers behind the long-term threats to South Africa's rhinos.

Predictions