Namibia: Trade in Omakipas Banned

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New Era (Windhoek)

21 August 2008
Posted to the web 21 August 2008

Wezi Tjaronda
Windhoek

Trade in omakipas (plural for ekipa) and other ivory carvings will not be allowed from September 1 until the law governing controlled wildlife products is in place, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) has announced.

An ekipa is a traditional ornament that is worn by Oshiwambo women as a status symbol.

Although trade in omakipas as cultural objects is provided for in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the ministry says it also has to deal with newly carved omakipas from ivory of unknown origin.

CITES approved small-scale trade in oma-kipas after Namibia amended its original proposal to remove a request for an annual export quota of 2000 kg of raw ivory and commercial exports of omakipas for resale.

Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Dr Kalumbi Shangula, told the press yesterday the ministry wants to establish legal trade in omakipas carved from ivory supplied by the MET.

In addition, all outlets and street vendors selling ivory products in Namibia will be required to be registered with the ministry as from September 1. An application fee of N$500 will be levied.

The Controlled Wildlife Products Bill, which governs the trade of ivory products, is expected to be tabled during the next sitting of Parliament. The Bill provides for comprehensive regulatory and enforcement measures and once enacted will replace the interim measures the ministry announced yesterday, Shangula said.

Shangula said the measures were put in place to comply with provisions of CITES and also to close loopholes that are in the current legislation that the Bill was trying to overcome.

Until now, the ministry does not know the number of traders in ivory because they are not registered.

Deputy Director: Wildlife Utilisation, Louisa Mupetami, said these measures would also enable Namibia to trace the origin of the ivory pieces that are produced.

"We want to prove that they are made from ivory that was legally obtained," she said.

The ivory items will be required to be accompanied by a certificate. It is also a requirement that the products should be produced in collaboration with the community and the jewellers association.

In a proposal to the 13th meeting of Conference of Parties, the MET said it would regulate and control the proposed worked ivory industry within Namibia by registering carvers and jewelers, issuing ivory derived from natural mortalities, natural breakages and management practices and items forfeited to the State by a court of law, issuing permits and maintaining a computer-based data management system.

CITES banned the international ivory trade in 1989, but on realising that southern Africa's elephant populations are healthy and well managed, in 1997 and again in 2002 CITES permitted some one-off sales of existing stocks of ivory gathered mostly from elephants which died of natural causes.

Namibia has been allowed to sell 9.2 tonnes.

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