The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), based in Modderfontein, hosted the second annual Rhino Day 2015 School Speech Competition.
This follows the success of the Rhino Day 2014 School Speech Competition,
The event took place on September 23 in conjunction with the Responsible Tourism Foundation and the Timbavati Bush School.
The day was held in the Limpopo province to mark World Rhino Day, which was celebrated on September 22.
The theme for 2015 was “Not on our watch”.
This year the event was supported by 25 schools and leaders from the local community and took place at the Wits Rural Facility in the Bushbuckridge region of Limpopo.
The facility is situated near the Orpen Gate of the Kruger National Park.
The competition gave school pupils a platform to put ideas, plans, and strategies together and get creative.
Pupils also had the opportunity to inform their peers as to how the poaching crisis affects them and present possible solutions.
Furthermore, it served as a platform to enable them to educate their own communities about the plight of South Africa’s rhino.
The winning school and pupil was announced on Monday, September 20, on the EWT website www.ewt.org.za.
An exciting addition to this year’s activity included a talk from the 2014 winner, Success Ngobeni, about his experiences at the First World Youth Rhino Summit in Hluhluwe-imfolozi Park, and how the competition changed his perception of rhinos.
South Africa is home to the world’s largest rhino population and has been the worst affected by rhino poaching and the illegal trade of rhino horn.
Rhinos are a national asset and a part of our natural heritage which brings in jobs and investments through tourism.
To curb rhino poaching, the EWT’s Rhino project works with multiple stakeholders from conservation authorities, local communities and law enforcement officials to address rhino poaching and conserve rhinos in the wild through projects that:
- Reduce smuggling of rhino parts through the deployment of sniffer dogs at airports and at private reserves.
- Upskill law enforcement officials in wildlife trade and crime-related issues.
- Support provincial conservation agencies and selected private reserves with fuel and equipment.
- Rehabilitate orphaned rhino calves and treat injured adult rhino in the field.
- Raise awareness among state prosecutors and magistrates of wildlife crime and penalties through face-to-face meetings.
- Raise awareness in local communities of the impact of rhino poaching on livelihoods and security.
- Support private rhino owners and game reserve managers to improve reserve security through the development and dissemination of the Rhino Security Booklet.
The overall winner of the competition received a tablet and was also afforded a bursary to study at the Southern African Wildlife College for six months in 2016 to acquire a certificate in Conservation and Environmental Education.
