02 Apr 2025

Empowering wildlife officers with arms of war will go a long way in improving national security and cross border crime.

Supporting the bill to amend Wildlife Conservation and National Park (Amendment) Bill, 2025 yesterday, legislators unanimously agreed that the weapons would  go a long way in reducing cases of poaching. MP Caterpillar Hikuama of Maun West said it was necessary to provide wildlife officers with relevant tools to fight poaching.

He said equipping wildlife officers with arms of war would not only protect wild animals and deter poaching but also curb the human-wildlife conflict. He said arming them would not by any means perpetuate wrongdoing as the officers had been well trained to understand how and when to use such weapons.

Mr Hikuama said wildlife officers were trained to take care of wild animals therefore must be at the forefront and the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) must only compliment where necessary to avoid conflict of interest.

Tati West MP, Mr Justin Hunyepa said wildlife officers usually faced well-armed poachers, therefore must be armed properly to counter attack the challenge. He said providing them with arms of war would not be enough as it was also necessary to provide them with the necessary transport. 

Besides the weapons, Mr Hunyepa said it was important to install surveillance cameras in poaching hot spots. He said arming wildlife officers would be strengthening national security and a response to an evolving national security threat.

Mahalapye East MP, Mr Augustine Nyatanga said it was important to support the wildlife department by equipping them with the necessary equipment. He said there was need for an integrated security management system, which would include public awareness. Mr Nyatanga said the country was at risk as it was keeping species that were a target, as some were believed to have certain parts with medicinal powers. 

He said it was important to deter and detect criminals as some came in as tourists. Therefore, he said wildlife department must have a strong intelligence wing. Mr Nyatanga said poachers were smart and with some form of military training, therefore it was necessary for wildlife officers to be equipped with the right weapons. He said because of their limited numbers, wildlife officers were fatigued even though faced with a mammoth of a task.

“Let us approach this department and holistically establish if it was well structured as well as have programmes in place to address all challenges of their work environment,” he said.

Serowe West MP, Mr Onalepelo Kedikilwe in supporting the bill indicated that wildlife was contributing immensely to the growth and diversification of the economy. Mr Kedikilwe said if well protected, the wildlife sector would go a long way in contributing to the growth of tourism sector and general livelihoods. He said the officers were well trained and they only needed to be equipped with the necessary tools and receive all the necessary support to deliver the desired results.

Selebi Phikwe East MP, Mr Kgoberego Nkawana said wildlife officers would not be effective without the necessary tools to do their job. Mr Nkawana indicated that the said arms of war were necessary for officers to do their job.

Responding to the debate on behalf of the Minister of Environment and Tourism, Minister of Labour and Home Affairs, Major General Pius Mokgware said it was necessary for wildlife officers to be equipped to protect the national resource and equally the lives of the people due to the increasing human-wildlife conflict. He said providing them with transport and the necessary uniform, which was designed for their specialisation, was also necessary in supporting their work.

Maj Gen. Mokgware said as per legislators’ requests, it was necessary to restructure and train officers as well as equip them with the necessary technology to effectively do their job. Minister Mokgware said their welfare must also be taken into consideration. ENDS