Social and Economic Impact of Poaching on Tourism

Social and Economic Impact of Poaching on Tourism

Overview

Poaching of wildlife continues to a significant problem in South Africa as is the case for many other African countries. Demand for ivory primarily in Asia and European country fuels the poaching for elephants and rhino with the decimation of the numbers of the wildlife. While conservation efforts are in place to curb the trend, poachers find new methods to kill the animals for their tusks. Poaching activities are now the broader scope, and the poacher is advanced, have sophisticated weapons and even influence to work around the regulation in their quest to bag the trophies (Naidoo, Fisher, Manica & Balmford, 2016). Due to the level of sophisticated poachers, efforts to deal with the problems face serious problems. Due to poaching, there are adverse economic and social problems in the tourism industry. Tourism plays a significant role in the South African economy with the sector contributing about 3 per cent of the gross domestic product, making it critical to the economic survival of the nation.

(Statistics South Africa, 2019)

The infographic above shows the impact of tourism in South Africa. More people in South Africa work in the tourism sector that the mining sector. Since most of the nation is dry, the Gross value added is more than agriculture which is thought to be the most significant in South Africa. Tourism, therefore, is a massive economic element for the South African economy.

Economic Impact of Poaching on Tourism

Tourism is none of the primary income earners for South Africa, accounting for significant revenue for the country. However, poaching significantly affects the revenue stream b discouraging tourism activities. The major attraction for tourism is the wildlife in the reserves which tourists pay to see and interact with the wild. It is an open secret that wildlife is more profitable alive than dead. However, poaching reduces the numbers of the animals making game park drives less appealing for the tourists (Lubbe, du Preez, Douglas & Fairer-Wessels, 2017). Poaching scares the animals and changes their pattern and tourists on game drives find it harder to see them. As such, the national parks are less lucrative posing economic challenges. Local communities depend on tourism through employments such as guides and commercial activities such as selling trinkets and memorabilia to the tourist. When the numbers of the tourists reduce, and so does the income of the local community. As such, poaching has a considerable impact on the economics of the country as well as the community since tourism supports vast economic activities.

Poaching indirectly affects tourism by creating a negative perception of the country. South Africa was in the international headlines after a beloved lion was killed by licensed hunters. The legality of the license becomes a topic of discussion throwing the country in the international spotlight about the perceived lack of concern of their wildlife through licensed hunting. Licensed Hunting and poaching are perceived as the same thing for most people, and the perception is wrong for the tourism industry (Lubbe et al., 2017). Prospective tourists shun South Africa due to the negative perception of the nation’s effort towards wildlife conservation. At the same time, the presence of the poachers in the parks poses security fears for the tourists in the parks as they feel threatened. The mere presence of poacher patrol units in the park is an indication that the people may not be safe I the parks. Such negative perception drives tourists directly impacting on the economic opportunities of the locals as well as the government.

Cecil the Lion (CBSnews.com 2019)

Cecil was a beloved lion who was tracked and killed by a licensed game hunter. The killing of the lion highlights the impact of tourism and the complicated relationship between licensed hunting and poaching.

While the economic impact of poaching is evident to the locals and the nation, the practice may prove economically more viable than any other. Poaching is illegal and the declaring of the practice illegal only helped to fuel the international price placed on ivory and other game items. Poaching syndicates offer significant amounts of money for local to engage their services in poaching. Locals are mainly procured as guides and trackers in the business as they guide the poacher through the territory that they understand most (Pimm et al., 2015). The allure of the money offered by the syndicates is way above the average wages, and to them, the wildlife becomes a source of income. As such, the motivation to engage in poaching is more appealing than any other job. As such, there is need to have a better structure to cater for people who would otherwise engage in poaching as a means of livelihood which would only work for the short term as it gradually kills off the tourism which would have been sustainable for posterity.

Social Impact of Poaching

1. I. Steinhart, in his article on the interactions of poaching among the whites and the locals, offers insight on the nature of poaching and its effects on tourism and the personal relations of the people. Poaching generally creates two distinct groups of people. The poacher and those against poaching, therefore, are pitted against each other. The locals usually engaged in animal hunting for food to supplement their diets (Steinhart, 1989). However, the coming of the Whiteman changes the mindset for hunting which evolved into poaching as they would keep the game meat and hand over the prized tusks. The local therefore engage in poaching for the economic gain now as opposed to the simple source of food. Tourism was also based on the game hunting as a sport and licenses were given for those who were interested in the hunting. Poaching enforcement laws, therefore, came into being due to the decimation of the local wildlife population and the social problems stemmed from the policies. Animosity arises from the tourists who gain a license for game hunting and the locals persecuted for hunting for food and their personal use. There is always constant accusation and witch-hunting among the officials. Such an atmosphere cripples tourism as well as fueling animosity among the locals.

Poaching and Biodiversity

South Africa is ranked as one of the most bio-diverse states in the world. The country is listed sixth on the international biodiversity index. At the same time, it is home to the largest population of Rhinos in the world. The biodiversity is directly linked to tourism since it is an attraction for people going to see the wildlife as well as enjoy the species of the country. The poaching of single species like the giraffe and the rhino has a significant implication on the biodiversity of the country (Gore et al., 2016). Elimination of one species crest an imbalance in the ecosystem and the habitats. The chain of reactions destabilizes the natural balance leading to endangering species.  The rhino population is one of the most endangered species with the numbers dwindling eliciting intervention measures. Since species depend on each other in the ecosystem removing or reducing the numbers of the species. The table below outlines the rhino decimation along the years and the impact of measures on the poaching menace.

(www.savetherhino.org, 2019).

The table shows the rising trend of rhino poaching peaking in 2015 and the dropping trend after the anti-poaching campaign.  Rhino and elephants are essential in the biodiversity, and their reducing numbers influence the other plants and animals in their habitats destabilizing the balance. The upset balance can lead to loss of other species as well.

References

DW.com (2018). South Africa: To stop poachers, provide them with an alternative income | DW | 24.09.2018. Retrieved 25 November 2019, from https://www.dw.com/en/south-africa-to-stop-poachers-provide-them-with-an-alternative-income/a-45576582

Gore, M. L., Ratsimbazafy, J., Rajaonson, A., Lewis, A., & Kahler, J. S. (2016). Public perceptions of poaching risks in a biodiversity hotspot: Implications for wildlife trafficking interventions. J. Trafficking Organ. Crime Secure, 2, 1-20.

Lubbe, B., du Preez, E., Douglas, A., & Fairer-Wessels, F. (2017). The impact of rhino poaching on tourist experiences and future visitation to National Parks in South Africa. Current Issues In Tourism, 22(1), 8-15. doi: 10.1080/13683500.2017.1343807

Naidoo, R., Fisher, B., Manica, A., & Balmford, A. (2016). Estimating economic losses to tourism in Africa from the illegal killing of elephants. Nature communications, 7, 13379. doi:10.1038/ncomms13379

Pimm, S. L., Alibhai, S., Bergl, R., Dehgan, A., Giri, C., Jewell, Z., … & Loarie, S. (2015). Emerging technologies to conserve biodiversity. Trends in ecology & evolution, 30(11), 685-696.

Save the Rhino International. (2019). Poaching Numbers | Conservation | Save the Rhino International. Retrieved 25 November 2019, from https://www.savetherhino.org/rhino-info/poaching-stats/

Steinhart, E. (1989). Hunters, Poachers and Gamekeepers: Towards A Social History of Hunting in Colonial Kenya. The Journal Of African History, 30(2), 247-264. doi: 10.1017/s0021853700024129