Hunting Namibia

Page Updated: Apr 2020

Hunting Namibia - Namibia is a very popular destination for hunters as it offers both plains and dangerous game hunting in fenced and unfenced areas.

Namibia Hunting Season

• 1st February until 30th November

Namibia Climate

• The best time to hunt is from April to June, when the temperatures are around 25°C degrees during the day
• January and February are the hottest months, when daytime temperatures in the interior can exceed 40ºC

Namibia Current Weather Forecast

Namibia Map

Namibia Hunting Areas Map

Most hunters going to Namibia will hunt on a private game ranch which is either one single property or part of one form of conservancy where several private land owners join their properties, yet still maintain their ownership of their original land.

Trophy hunting is also conducted on some Communal Conservancies which were created to provide a way for rural people to benefit from wildlife while being responsible for conserving the game. The local people decide they will allow trophy hunting in their conservancy and receive payment for the contract and most, if not all of the trophy fees and meat. They also benefit from employment, training and the concession fees paid by the hunter. Communal Conservancies maybe multi-use areas with some trophy hunting zones, some non-consumptive tourism and agriculture.

There are also some government-owned concessions which grant hunting rights to hunting companies. These areas are generally in remote locations within or close to Game Reserves or National Parks.

Getting To Your Hunt Area In Namibia

Most hunters going to private hunting ranches will travel via Johannesburg to Hosea Kutako International Airport, Windhoek, from where they will be collected and driven to the hunt areas.

If you are hunting on a Caprivi conservancy you can use Air Namibia to Katima Mulilo airstrip if the schedule fits your hunt dates. Alternatively there a many charter flights available from Windhoek to the more remote hunting areas.

Hunting Accommodation In Namibia

You have a whole lot of choice with your hunting accommodation in Namibia which can range from luxurious 'designer' lodges/chalets/safari tents with top class facilities to the more basic or rustic.

Namibia Hunting Terrain

The typical savanna terrain flat and dry with thorny bushes and scrub that can be quite thick. However there are some hunting areas of the south and central regions which are located in quite mountainous terrain which can be more physically demanding for hunters.

Namibia Hunting Laws

Big game hunting, such as for elephant, buffalo and lion etc, is only conducted on Communal Conservancies or state-controlled concessions.

• All trophy hunting to take place half an hour before sunrise and after sunset.
• No hunting is allowed at night.
• No hunting is allowed with artificial light.
• There is no official minimum number of days for a hunting safari based upon the species being hunted. Mandatory hunt lengths may be set by outfitters.
• Shooting from a vehicle is not permitted, though the vehicle can be used to reach the area from where hunting on foot can begin.
• The Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) allocates quotas by species to each hunting concession or hunting conservancy on an individual basis.
• On privately owned land the owner decides the quota for each species.
• Hunting permits must be issued prior to the hunt commencing.
• A separate permit must be issued for each individual hunting client.
• Special hunting permits are required for leopard, cheetah and lion.
• Only 2 trophies per species may be taken per hunting client per hunting permit.
• Minimum calibre requirement is .284.
• Namibia game laws classify minimum energy values of hunting rifles.
• Big, dangerous game - minimum of 5400 Joule. Equivalent 3982.8 ft/lbs
• Large plains game and leopard - minimum of 2700 Joule. Equivalent 1991.4 ft/lbs
• Medium to small plains game and game birds - minimum of 1350 Joule. Equivalent 995.7 ft/lbs

Namibia Hunting Species

• Chacma Baboon - CITES II
• Cape Buffalo
• Blesbok
• Chobe Bushbuck
• Bushpig
• Caracal - CITES II
• African Wildcat - CITES II
• Cheetah - CITES I
• Nile Crocodile - CITES II
• Civet
• Common Duiker
• Damara Dik Dik
• Cape Eland
• Livingstone's Eland
• Elephant - CITES II
• Bat-Eared Fox
• Cape Fox
• Genet
• Kalahari Gemsbok
• Giraffe
• Sharpe's Grysbok
• Lichtenstein's Hartebeest
• Red Hartebeest
• Hippopotamus - CITES II
• Spotted Hyena
• Brown Hyena
• Black-Faced Impala
• Southern Impala
• Black-Backed Jackal
• Side-Striped Jackal
• Greater Southern Kudu
• Klipspringer
• Red Lechwe - CITES II
• Leopard - CITES I
• Lion - CITES II
• Common Nyala
• Porcupine
• Ostrich
• Puku
• Common Reedbuck
• White Southern Rhinocerous - CITES I
• Black Rhinocerous - CITES I
• Sable
• Southern Roan
• Serval - CITES II
• Steinbok
• Kalahari Springbok
• Warthog
• Common Waterbuck
• Tsessebe
• Blue Wildebeest
• Black Wildebeest
• Burchell's Zebra
• Hartmann's Mountain Zebra - CITES II

Namibia Hunting Trophy Export/Import Restrictions

Cheetah is available to hunt in Namibia as CITES I animal, with a hunting trophy CITES export quota of 150 animals but the US Fish & Wildlife Service does not permit import of cheetah trophies from Namibia. Cheetah trophy export from Namibia to the EU is permitted as an Annex A species. Cheetah trophy import is not allowed into Australia.

A CITES import permit may only be issued for adult male black rhino.

Black-faced impala are still listed as 'Endangered' by USF&W so are not permitted to be imported into the USA.

Get A Flavour Of Hunting Namibia

Hunting Namibia Recommended Reading

Sands Of Silence: On Safari In Namibia by Peter Hathaway Capstick is an illustrated look at a Namibian safari revealing the Bushmen's culture, political persecution and the lives of these hunter-gatherers.

Hunting Namibia Recommended Viewing

The Namibia Safari DVD sees Ken Wilson hunting 3 species that can only be hunted in Namibia: the Damara Dik-Dik, Hartmann's Zebra and the Namibian Oryx. There is also footage of 2 species that can be hunted in Namibia, but not imported to the US - cheetah and black-faced impala. 55 minutes. DVD.

Hunting Namibia Resources

• Firearm Import Regulations for Namibia
• Namibia Travel for information on money, health & malaria, electricity, international travel and visas for Namibia.
• Namibia Professional Hunting Association

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