Why black rhino needs more protection

In a report, the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI), says the country had 10,000 rhinos in early 1970s conserved in different national parks, but the number diminished to only 32 in 1995. This is the reason for the heavyweight mammal to be classified as an endangered species. African rhinos are of two types, white and black rhinos.

The black rhinoceros or hook-lipped rhinoceros is a species of rhinoceros, native to eastern and southern Africa including Angola, Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Although the rhinoceros is referred to as black, its colours vary from brown to grey.

The species overall is classified as critically endangered. Three subspecies have been declared extinct, including the western black rhinoceros, which was declared extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2011.

Officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources is an international organisation working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. It is involved in data gathering and analysis, research, field projects, advocacy, and education. IUCN's mission is to "influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable .

Over the past decades, IUCN has widened its focus beyond conservation ecology and now incorporates issues related to sustainable development in its projects. IUCN does not itself aim to mobilise the public in support of nature conservation. It tries to influence the actions of governments, business and other stakeholders by providing information and advice, and through building partnerships. The organisation is best known to the wider public for compiling and publishing the IUCN red list of threatened species, which assesses the conservation status of species worldwide.

IUCN has a membership of over 1400 governmental and non-governmental organizations. Some 16,000 scientists and experts participate in the work of IUCN commissions on a voluntary basis. It employs approximately 1000 full-time staff in more than 50 countries. Its headquarters are in Gland, Switzerland.[2]

IUCN has observer and consultative status at the United Nations and plays a role in the implementation of several international conventions on nature conservation and biodiversity. It was involved in establishing the World Wide Fund for Nature and the World Conservation Monitoring Centre. In the past, IUCN has been criticized for placing the interests of nature over those of indigenous peoples. In recent years, its closer relations with the business sector have caused controversy.[3][4]

IUCN was established in 1948. It was previously called the International Union for the Protection of Nature (1948–1956) and the World Conservation Union (1990–2008)

In the same vein, Mkomazi National Park is set to become the first wildlife park in Africa specialised for black rhino tourism.

When planning their African safari, tourists from Europe, America, and Asia would add to their visiting itineraries, a few days’ tour of Mkomazi National Park to see the rare African black rhino, now on the verge of disappearing from Earth.

Looking to diversification of tourism and wildlife safaris in Tanzania, Mkomazi National Park will introduce rhino tourism in July this year as a new attraction to attract tourists who are interested to see and learn more about the African black rhino

Under the management of Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA), Mkomazi is expected to be the only wildlife park in East Africa and the rest of Africa where visitors may see the black rhino.

TANAPA Conservation Commissioner Dr. Allan Kijazi said that the leser-known Mkomazi will introduce rhino tourism within its wildlife ecosystem. For the past 20 years, Mkomazi Wildlife Park has been running a rhino conservation project which had attracted breeding of rhinos.

TANAPA is expecting to gain over US$200,000 from about 7,680 visitors per year. About US$1.6 million will be spent for the rhino conservation project in Mkomazi. Rhinos are protected in a fence where tourists can view them more easily than in the wild plains.