YANKARI under attack - Elephant population (Nigeria)

Nigerian Conservation Foundation at http://www.ncfnigeria.org/

December 2008

Over the past six months, the attention of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) has been drawn to the deteriorating situation with the protection of wildlife populations in Yankari Game Reserve, Bauchi State. It is becoming increasingly obvious that the efforts by the Reserve management to curb poaching are grossly inadequate to control the current extent of wildlife poaching in Nigeria’s premier Game Reserve. While this disturbing situation poses a threat to all the wildlife in the reserve, our main concern is the impact on the elephant population. Yankari has one of the most important population of this species in West Africa. If the current poaching trend continues, Yankari may lose more than half of its population of elephants over the next six months. In the last few weeks alone there are reports of at least 5 elephants being killed and many more were killed earlier in the year. Every day it is possible to find meat from elephants, roan, waterbuck and buffalo in the surrounding markets and this is all emanating from Yankari.

 

The reality of the situation is that protection in Yankari is non-existent. There are no functional vehicles and as a result of this, there are no active patrols. The morale of the game rangers is at an all time low as not only do they have no mobility but no food or allowances or any other equipment. Added to this they have only 2 functional firearms and the dangers inherent with this was starkly brought home when one of the rangers was shot by poachers in the reserve last week. Gun shots can be heard throughout the reserve on a nightly basis even adjacent to the Wikki camp and poachers are active all along the Gaji River which flows through the reserve. The huge investment that the State Government has made in Yankari will be meaningless and the visible improvements of the game populations evident earlier this year will all be lost unless concerted action is taken against the poachers as without doubt, the situation is the worst that it has ever been in the past 20 years.

 

NCF views the current situation in Yankari as extremely disturbing and calls on the Bauchi State Government to take immediate steps to rectify the situation. Decree No. 11 of 1985 prohibits the killing and or trade in endangered species of wildlife, which includes elephants. The State Government has an international responsibility to enforce this. Furthermore, Nigeria is a signatory to the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and as such all trade particularly in elephant tusks needs to be curtailed.

 

NCF hopes that the Bauchi State Government will implement measures to maintain Yankari’s status as the foremost reserve in the country. Visitors travel from all over the country to see the rich biodiversity in the reserve, particularly the elephants, but if these disappear, the future for the reserve will be very bleak. Action is needed now not later if Nigeria ’s heritage is to be safeguarded for the future. Otherwise who will want to visit a Nature Reserve devoid of wildlife.

 

The consequences of this will be another huge government investment inevitably gone to waste. It is not too late to rescue the situation but the time for action is NOW otherwise the elephants and other wild animals for which Yankari is renowned throughout the world will all be just a memory.

Article at the following link: