The body of a villager from Nongozi was retrieved from a swamp in the Nkasa-Rupara National Park in the Zambezi Region on Tuesday. 

The 29-year-old  Samupwa Lubinda's body was already in a state of early decomposition when it was retrieved. 

According to a police report, Lubinda drowned during a fishing excursion with two other men in the park on Sunday.

It is alleged that when they were busy removing fish from the nets, they saw anti-poaching officials and jumped into the water.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism is currently conducting an assessment to determine the extent of rhino poaching. In light of the recent poaching incidents in the park, the ministry has also requested an urgent high-level meeting with the security cluster.

To date, a total of 28 rhinos have been poached in Namibia. Out of these, 19 were poached in the Etosha National Park, while the remaining 10 were discovered during dehorning operations throughout the month of March.

The Zambezi Regional Council is ready to host the 34th Independence Celebration for the first time since independence.

Zambezi Governor, Alufea Sampofu, says all logistics have been put in place, and the established Regional Preparatory Committee is hard at work to ensure that come March 21st, it's all systems go.

The Zambezi Regional Council is ready to host about 10,000 people at the Katima Mulilo Sports Complex, and Sampofu is looking forward to hosting the guests.

There is a global concern regarding the disappearance of wetlands over the last century.

The Spokesperson of the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism says wetlands have been disappearing at an alarming rate of three times faster than forests.

Wetlands are characterised by ecosystems that are primarily covered with water.

These can be both freshwater, marine, or coastal, and even man-made sites such as rice paddies, reservoirs, saltpans, and fishponds. 

The Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, announced on Monday the appointment of a new board of directors for the Namibia Tourism Board (NTB), with effect from November 1, 2023, to October 31, 2026.

They are Janette Fourie as chairperson to be deputised by Olavi Hamwele, and Ally Karaerua, Maggy Mbako, Nguvitjita Zatjirua, Efraim Nkoshi, and Rachel Nathaniel-Koch as members.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism and stakeholders handed over N$37 million in project funding, grants, and equipment to various conservancies in the Zambezi Region.

Of the N$37 million, N$20 million is intended for poverty-oriented support for community conservation, while N$17 million is directed towards community livelihood development and wildlife conflict management.

Two projects are co-financed by Germany and the Namibian government.

Twelve upcoming farmers in the Zambezi Region received livestock through the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism's integrated landscape approach for enhancing livelihoods and environmental governance to eradicate poverty.

A total of 48 cattle were handed over, mainly to women, youth, and people with disabilities from Machita, Mubiza, Bukalo, Kalimbeza, Malindi, Kabbe, and Lusese areas.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism has received only three bids for the sale of 40 crocodiles.

The Ministry's Spokesperson, Romeo Muyunda, confirmed that the three bids are currently being evaluated and that the process is expected to end next week.

He explained that once the evaluation is complete, the 40 crocodiles will be awarded to the successful bidder.

For now, the ministry cannot reveal the names of the bidders until the evaluation process is done.

The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism seized about 1,000 illegally cut timber logs last year.

This was revealed in the ministry's Wildlife Protection and Law Enforcement in Namibia report.

While reporting on the successes, the ministerial report indicates numerous challenges still facing the ministry in protecting timber.

These include transport limitations, staff shortages, ineffective permit systems, open transit trucks that allow en-route tampering, difficulties in quantifying timber volumes, and some tree species not being listed on CITES.

Since the start of the fire season in April, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism has recorded a total of 499,344 hectares destroyed by uncontrolled fires.

The public is called upon to take precautions when handling fires.

Namibia's fire season starts in April and ends in September.

Fires have caused massive damage to the environment and properties over the past few years.

The public, farmers, and property owners need to put measures in place to minimise the risks of veld fires.