Poaching is not exclusive to land!

Illegal poaching is the harvesting of wildlife in protected areas. Poaching can be done on land in wildlife reserves as well as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) or where an act or use of a piece of equipment is not permitted.

Many of Africa’s lakes are threatened by illegal fishing with the use of nets that target small and underdeveloped fish. This curbs the growth of fish populations and limits the number of reproductively active fish. Fewer fish are then able to reach maturity and contribute to the growth of the population.

This harmful cycle is prohibited in many lakes, however the manpower to fine illegal fishermen and patrol regularly is severely restricted.

To aid this and alleviate pressure, we have a number of teams who survey overfished areas and report illegal fishing activity. A major issue is being able to educate the community why they should not target the underdeveloped fish, and address the root cause of the problem. Regular talks and meetings with community leaders are set up to encourage the promotion of sustainable fishing and why it is necessary to conserve declining fish populations.