Why Hundreds of Rhinos Are Set To Be Dehorned

Hundreds of rhinos are about to be dehorned in Namibia in order to deter poachers from killing them.

Speaking at the launch of the annual dehorning campaign, Minister of Environment and Tourism Pohamba Shifeta said that removing a rhino's horn devalues them to poachers, as reported by Voa News.

The Namibian Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism hopes to dehorn 600 rhinos in the next year.

Namibia is home to over a third of Africa's remaining black rhino population. Most are in the Etosha National Park, which has the highest concentration of the rhinos in the world. Black rhinos are critically endangered. There are around 6,000 remaining in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

In 1961, they were on the brink of extinction. However, persistent conservation efforts brought their numbers back from 2,410.

Black rhinos are dying out mainly due to the demand for their horns—a threat which faces all species of rhino. Despite it being illegal, there is still a market for the horns, mostly in Asia. It is used in traditional medicine and is also kept as a trophy as a sign of wealth.

In medicine, the horn is used to treat fevers, nosebleeds and even as stroke prevention. However, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that it works.

Since the start of 2023, six black rhinos were killed in the Etosha National Park.

"We want to dehorn most of them so that they can become safe, and also because sometimes they kill each other," Shifeta said at the launch, Voa News reported. "Because most of the fatalities happening, natural fatalities happening among them, especially black rhino, they are very vicious because of fights."

Although dehorning the rhinos can have potentially negative impacts on the species, it is ultimately effective in deterring poaching, which still remains the biggest threat to the species.

Their horns are used predominantly to protect their young, and also defend themselves.

The dehorning initiative has been ongoing in the country for years but it is only done when officials deem it necessary.

And in recent months, poaching has been on the rise.

Government data showed that in 2022, rhino poaching reached a record number. Authorities reported that 87 rhinos were hunted last year, compared to just 45 in 2021, Al Jazeera reported.

According to a Ministry of Environment, Forest and Tourism spokesperson at the time, 61 black rhinos were killed, and 26 white rhinos were killed. Most of these were found dead in Etosha.

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