Elephant Hunts to Start in Botswana at Likely Discount to Rivals
- Botswana government to sell rights to shoot 158 elephants
- Country has courted controversy by lifting hunting ban in May
A herd of elephants at the Mashatu game reserve on July 26, 2010 in Mapungubwe, Botswana.
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Botswana is reintroducing elephant hunts and is likely to sell licenses to kill the animals at a discount to its neighbors. That could further inflame the controversy that’s threatening a $2 billion tourism industry after a five-year ban on hunting was lifted.
The government will auction licenses to hunting operators for the right to shoot an elephant but is yet to decide on the minimum price it will set, said Kitso Mokaila, the country’s environment minister. Botswana will allow the killing of 158 elephants in trophy hunts this year.