Blow the horn on rhino poaching
Thursday 22 September marked World Rhino Day. The Intelligence Support Against Rhino Poaching (ISAP) shared its excitement at the increase in environmental awareness amongst the Namibian public at large.
The “Blow The Horn On Rhino Poaching” campaign launched on 20 April by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET), Namibian Police (Nampol), Intelligence Support Against Poaching (ISAP) and Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL), a subsidiary of the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group, contributes significantly to environmental awareness in Namibia according to the founder of ISAP, Fritz Kaufmann.
Kaufmann: “The number of leads that we have received on the 55555 number and the ISAP app over the past five months is a clear indication of the growth in people’s awareness of the environment and its worth.” He went on to say that some tip-off cases of poaching were referred to the Ministry of Environment and Tourism which is currently under investigation.
NBL Managing Director, Wessie van der Westhuizen, emphasised the value of the rhino to the local tourism sector: “Tourism is a major contributor to job creation in Namibia, and has the potential to create many more jobs – which is exactly what we need in our quest to fight poverty. Apart from the peace and stability which makes Namibia a safe tourist haven, other key factors driving Namibian tourism are our natural heritage and wildlife, of which rhinos are a major attraction.”
Kaufmann concluded by saying that taking care of the environment is each and everyone’s responsibility. “All of us need to take hands and embrace this initiative as a collective effort in preserving the future sustainability of our country and its wildlife for future generations to appreciate and enjoy.”
The Blow The Horn On Rhino Poaching campaign was introduced as a platform for tip-offs to report illegal rhino poaching which has become a national concern. Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL) availed N$1 million as a reward and which is divided into 4 x N$250 000 separate amounts per successful recipient i.e. the total amount paid per successful recipient will be N$250 000 on a case by case basis.
The steps below must be followed:
- Report information to ISAP through correct channels. Information must be as detailed as possible.
- Notification of information received will be sent to source.
- Information will be screened and prioritised by ISAP, based on detail, accuracy, validity and provision of “useable” evidence.
- Relevant information will then be passed on to authorities for investigation and follow up.
- Should information provided by source be used in a formal investigation, by the authorities, then the source will become known as a candidate.
- The candidate will be notified that the information is being used in an investigation and he will be kept informed of progress, as and when determined by the authorities.
- Upon arrest, successful conviction and sentencing of a poacher/syndicate/smuggler, the candidate will become a recipient of the reward.
- Payment of reward will become due to recipient on final written approval from the authorities.
Any false, misleading or irrelevant information provided by a source, will result in the source becoming blacklisted. Blacklisted numbers will be barred from future participation.
Reporting channels are confidential, thereby providing protection of any source’s personal detail.
The “Blow The Horn On Rhino Poaching” campaign launched on 20 April by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET), Namibian Police (Nampol), Intelligence Support Against Poaching (ISAP) and Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL), a subsidiary of the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group, contributes significantly to environmental awareness in Namibia according to the founder of ISAP, Fritz Kaufmann.
Kaufmann: “The number of leads that we have received on the 55555 number and the ISAP app over the past five months is a clear indication of the growth in people’s awareness of the environment and its worth.” He went on to say that some tip-off cases of poaching were referred to the Ministry of Environment and Tourism which is currently under investigation.
NBL Managing Director, Wessie van der Westhuizen, emphasised the value of the rhino to the local tourism sector: “Tourism is a major contributor to job creation in Namibia, and has the potential to create many more jobs – which is exactly what we need in our quest to fight poverty. Apart from the peace and stability which makes Namibia a safe tourist haven, other key factors driving Namibian tourism are our natural heritage and wildlife, of which rhinos are a major attraction.”
Kaufmann concluded by saying that taking care of the environment is each and everyone’s responsibility. “All of us need to take hands and embrace this initiative as a collective effort in preserving the future sustainability of our country and its wildlife for future generations to appreciate and enjoy.”
The Blow The Horn On Rhino Poaching campaign was introduced as a platform for tip-offs to report illegal rhino poaching which has become a national concern. Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL) availed N$1 million as a reward and which is divided into 4 x N$250 000 separate amounts per successful recipient i.e. the total amount paid per successful recipient will be N$250 000 on a case by case basis.
The steps below must be followed:
- Report information to ISAP through correct channels. Information must be as detailed as possible.
- Notification of information received will be sent to source.
- Information will be screened and prioritised by ISAP, based on detail, accuracy, validity and provision of “useable” evidence.
- Relevant information will then be passed on to authorities for investigation and follow up.
- Should information provided by source be used in a formal investigation, by the authorities, then the source will become known as a candidate.
- The candidate will be notified that the information is being used in an investigation and he will be kept informed of progress, as and when determined by the authorities.
- Upon arrest, successful conviction and sentencing of a poacher/syndicate/smuggler, the candidate will become a recipient of the reward.
- Payment of reward will become due to recipient on final written approval from the authorities.
Any false, misleading or irrelevant information provided by a source, will result in the source becoming blacklisted. Blacklisted numbers will be barred from future participation.
Reporting channels are confidential, thereby providing protection of any source’s personal detail.
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