Namibian Professional Hunting Association (NAPHA) convened its 40th Annual General Meeting November 26, 2013 at the Sun Karros Lodge in Daan Viljoen, Namibia. Prior the the meeting, SCI President Craig Kauffman and CEO Phil DeLone met with NAPHA's EC to discuss any specific business that needed to be addressed and where CEO DeLone thanked NAPHA for inviting SCI, and NAPHA President Kai-Uwe Denker replied that it was an honor to have SCI at the meeting.
During his address at the meeting, Denker reflected on the 40 years of NAPHA and recognized the “foundation that was laid for what today ranks as one of the premier hunting destinations on the continent.” Those foundations include enshrining the concept of sustainable utilization of natural resources in the Namibian Constitution, and NAPHA recognizing its responsibility of contributing to social uplift in Namibia. Among those many social contributions, NAPHA has embarked on the inception of a training program for Communal Conservancies to run their own trophy hunting operations. That program will enable those Conservancies to reap the full benefits of sustainable utilization of their wildlife resources, and NAPHA called on other stakeholders to help make the training program a success.
As a Namibian safari is packed with excitement and treasured memories, Joofie Lamprecht, eldest son of Namibian hunting icons Joof and Marina Lamprecht, gave an excellent presentation during the AGM on how to take a perfect picture of a hunted trophy animal. Lamprecht's attention to detail and suggestions for extraordinary photo composition will go along way toward making sure hunters who hunt with NAPHA Members return home with exceptional photo memories.
Kudu health was an important subject of discussion at this years' AGM. Dr. Rainer Hassel, AGRA, explained how areas of kudu overpopulation spread diseases, and appealed for money to help fund a project to improve knowledge of kudu diseases and develop practical methods of immunization. Dr. Hassel reported the project will cost about 2.5 Million Namibian dollars. SCI Foundation Conservation Committee is reviewing and addressing this issue.
During his presentation at the meeting, DeLone presented NAPHA with a check for 50,000 Namibian dollars and continued sharing across Africa the message about what SCI is doing to protect lions. During follow-up questions, one Namibian PH asked DeLone what he thought would happen with lions in the future. DeLone cautioned that “the antis
are extremely well-funded” and that their mission wasn't about saving or protecting animals, but about banning hunting and “going after the livelihoods” of professional hunters in Namibia.¬† “They're not your friend,” DeLone emphasized.
In other news, it was reported at the NAPHA AGM that all across southern Africa, banks would no longer accept foreign cashier or personal checks, and that all foreign transactions must be by electronic fund transfer (EFT), credit card or cash, and that American dollars printed prior to 2004 would not be accepted. SCI will look deeper into this issue with primary sources and report its findings here and in a future issue of Safari Times, Likewise, NAPHA is seeking clarification on its end with Namibian banks, which is just one example of what NAPHA does for its members and for international hunters.
This concludes the circuit of 2013 Annual General Meetings for the hunting associations across southern Africa. We look forward to follow-ups throughout the year, and to returning to the AGMs in 2014.
