The Lucrative African Industry
A study in the journal Biological Conservation estimated that African trophy hunting is worth more than $200 million per year. The hunting industry in South Africa generates more than $744 million annually. It employs approximately 70’000 people and approximately 9’000 trophy hunters travel to South Africa each year. Ninety percent of them are from the United States.
Limited Licenses, Guided Adventure
For many desirable species, a limited number of licenses are issued to limit the number of animals that can be killed. To ensure that trophy hunters abide by laws and regulations and can actually find the animals, they go on guided hunts with professional hunters who are often local and conduct tens of hundreds of hunts per season.
Does Trophy Hunting Truly Benefit Local Communities?
Since hunters spend large amounts of money to ensure that they get the trophies they came for, many argue that trophy hunting is actually a conservation effort because – according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – trophy hunting provides an economic incentive for ranchers to continue breeding hunting-desirable species, thereby reducing the threat of extinction.
According to a study sponsored by the International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation in partnership with the FDA, the revenue generated by hunting tourism in seven members of the Southern African Development Community in 2008 was approximately US$190 million. However, the Economists at Large, an NGO, claims that little of the US$190 million reached the communities.
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Jeff Flocken of IFAW claims that “despite wild claims that trophy hunting brings millions of dollars in income to local people in otherwise poor communities, there is no evidence of this.“
The Real Economic Powerhouses: Wildlife Tourism
The money that comes into Africa from hunting pales in comparison to the billions generated by tourists who come just to see wildlife. For most African countries with an active trophy hunting industry, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia, the industry generates only between 0.3% and 5% of total tourism revenue.
