Namibia sells 57 elephants to buyers abroad

The environment ministry in Namibia says it has auctioned 57 elephants, with the majority going to buyers abroad.

The ministry says the auction is needed to reduce the number of elephants intruding on the human population, and says the $400,000 (£290,000) raised will support conservation programmes.

But critics say there are far fewer elephants in Namibia than the government estimates, and that officials have no right to sell animals that naturally migrate across the continent.

This article originally appeared on BBC News

Photo: AFP