Strict Caps, Escalating Conflict: The High-Stakes Battle Over Namibia’s Leopard Quotas

By: Yanna Smith

Photo: Contributed by Science Daily

Trophy hunting of leopards was recently in the spotlight with a series of public engagements on the matter.

Farmers are of the view that the Cites-imposed limit of 250 hunting tags per year is too low as conflict with this species continues to escalate both on commercial farms and on communal and conservancy land where 8 percent of all conflict cases are attributed to leopards.

Agricultural surveys estimate that predators kill an average of 9.2 livestock units per farm each year on commercial Namibian farms. While this is an average, highly affected “hotspot” farms suffer double or triple that amount. Cites records indicate that Namibian exports of leopard trophies between 2020 and 2024, reached 966 over the five-year period, roughly 193 per year.

The most recent survey of the local leopard population was done in 2019 and placed the numbers at 11 733 animas.

The industry has also suffered major infringements of the regulations with arrests made for hunting with dogs, and at night. Starting at 306 000 Namibian dollars per trophy during a safari, these hunts are highly lucrative, especially for commercial farmers who are not eligible for offsets in the national compensation policy.

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