Namibia's Rhino Horn Trade Ban Proposal Fails

Sat Dec 06 2025 11:50:24 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

In a significant conservation meeting, Namibia's attempts to lift the international ban on rhino horn trade have been overwhelmingly defeated. This decision raises ongoing debates about poaching and conservation strategies.

At a recent conservation conference in Uzbekistan, Namibia's proposals to overturn the ban on the trade of rhino horns and elephant ivory were rejected. This comes as Namibia is dealing with a record number of rhinos poached, primarily due to their horn's high demand for traditional medicine in Asia. Experts are divided on whether legalizing the trade could help support rhino conservation or exacerbate poaching.

Namibia's proposals to lift the ban on the international trade in black and white rhino horns have been rejected at a key conservation meeting.

The result of the voting at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) earlier this week was adopted by the conference on Thursday in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Namibia had also proposed overturning the ban on African savanna elephant ivory - this too was defeated.

Eyebrows were raised about the rhino horn trade proposals mainly because Namibia pioneered the practice of cutting the horns off rhinos in 1989, making them less appealing to poachers.

Dehorning was followed by other southern African countries, such as Zimbabwe, Eswatini, and South Africa.

Rhino horns are prized in traditional Asian medicine and are also status symbols in China, Vietnam, and some other Southeast Asian countries.

Namibia tabled two separate proposals - one for black rhinos and the other for southern white rhino. Both were resoundingly defeated, with only around 30 votes out of about 120 in favor.

Cites regulations require a two-thirds majority for a proposal to be adopted.

Black rhinos are listed as critically endangered, with only 6,421 alive in 2023, a decline of more than 90% since 1960. Southern white rhinos are near threatened, with a population of 15,752, which has also decreased by 11% since 2023.

Cites banned the trade in rhino horns in 1977, but poaching has continued, with more than 8,000 rhinos lost in the last decade.

Namibia's stockpiles of rhino horns, estimated at 6.45 tonnes of white rhino horn and 4.6 tonnes of black rhino horn, are cited as part of their motivation to lift the trade ban.

Despite the reasons for supporting legalized trade, many conservationists fear it would lead to increased poaching, similar to past crises fueled by legal trade.