A Namibia 25 millions animal gift to Cuba

Namibian
By JANA-MARI SMITH

The donation of Namibian wildlife to Cuba remains shrouded in secrecy even as Environment and Tourism Minister, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, assured this newspaper that the process would be strictly monitored on the home front as well as with the international trade organisation which monitors the trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (CITES).

The translocation of an estimated 150 animals - said to include the ‘big five’ as well as a large number of other species - follows an earlier Cabinet decision confirming the gift to Cuba, including all the costs involved. Original estimates put the amount at about N$25 million, but the size of the wildlife ‘wish-list’ may at least quadruple, according to some.
Confidentiality surrounds what some regard as political payback to Cuba for their assistance to Namibia’s liberation movement, Swapo, during the struggle years.
There are fears that what is seen as a politically motivated donation could place certain wildlife species at serious risk, both because of the travel distance and also due to the relocation to a tropical climate.
But these concerns were dismissed by the Ministry of Environment
and Tourism (MET) which is currently in the process of finalising the list of wildlife to be shipped to national parks in Cuba.
The entire project will cost Namibia at least N$25 million, reports in a local English daily stated in July this year. Other reliable sources said that the final project could cost more than N$100 million by the time of its completion in two years.
More >