Namibia sells 57 elephants to buyers abroad for $400,000 (£290,000)

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.

According to government figures, a conservation drive saw Namibia's elephant population grow from around 7,500 in 1995 to 24,000 in 2019

Source: bbc Africa