During the passage of the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill in the House of Lords between March and September 2023, a suite of amendments were tabled for deliberation. These amendments include amending the Bill from a blanket ban to a case-by-case assessment of trophies imported into the United Kingdom based on whether they contribute to the conservation of wildlife and human economic upliftment.

Botswana, one of the major destinations for trophy hunters, is a particular case in point.

The southern African nation has been promoted by some in the House of Lords as an example of a trophy hunting ‘success.’

Investigation conclusion: Field investigations, in-person interviews and literature, financial audit, international policy document reviews have been undertaken over the course of a year to assess the validity that Botswana can provide meaningful and tangible benefits to its wildlife and people. This is a summary of the results:

It is clear that any claim that trophy hunting in Botswana benefits wildlife conservation and human livelihoods is a misrepresentation. Trophy hunting is responsible for a system that stimulates corruption, exploitation and fraudulent practices. It ensures that the wealthy trophy hunting operators hold the purse-strings at the expense local community members who must endure a continuing cycle of impoverishment with little hope of economic upliftment.

The evidence also proves that trophy hunting does not aid in the preservation of wildlife but opens the door to overly high hunting quotas, the over-use of quotas as well as greed and corruption where financial gain always trumps precautionary and sound conservation practices.

The published report can be found here.

PUBLISHED ARTICLES:
The Gazette
Protect All Wildlife
The Mirror