URGENT ACCOUNTABILITY NEEDED – WAPFSA CHALLENGES AUTHORITIES ON THE URBAN WILDLIFE CENTRE AT KOGELFONTEIN

Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa

The Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa (WAPFSA) is a national alliance and collaborative network of South African non-governmental organisations representing the interests of wild animals and their natural environments. Our members bring expertise in science, conservation, environmental protection, law, animal welfare and rights, social justice and public advocacy. We engage government, industry and communities through research, policy and legislative submissions, advocacy, monitoring, investigation and collaborative legal interventions. Our work promotes ethical and compassionate conservation, humane coexistence and the recognition that biodiversity protection, animal well-being and social justice are interconnected. 

Continued Condemnation of Plans to Relocate Cape Peninsula Baboons to Captivity

The capture and permanent relocation of the baboons from the Seaforth and Waterfall troops in Simon’s Town is being driven by the Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Joint Task Team (CPBMJTT) comprising the City of Cape Town, SANParks and CapeNature supported by their consultant experts including Professor Justin O Riain, Dr Esme Beamish and Dr Joselyn Mormile. 

WAPFSA has, from the onset, strongly condemned the various published plans to either kill or to relocate Cape Peninsula baboons to permanent captivity. We have labelled the current plan a false dichotomy, a functional extirpation, and a grotesque reminder of South Africa’s terrible past.

WAPFSA explicitly rejects the choice presented by authorities, that the baboons must either be permanently caged or killed as a completely constructed false dilemma. We maintain that opposing both options is perfectly consistent because viable, non-lethal, free-ranging coexistence alternatives have not been fully or fairly assessed. We will  continue to insist that these options are rigorously debated and trialled. 

WAPFSA is paying close attention to how the City of Cape Town is reacting, to the mounting public scrutiny and criticism from investigative journalists and civic groups over their policies aimed at fast-tracking large-scale property developments. Local residents’ associations, environmental advocates, and civic coalitions contend that the municipality is rushing major approvals. They argue this happens at the expense of environmental protections, resource management, and heritage preservation. Meanwhile, city officials defend these fast-tracked initiatives as essential mechanisms for economic growth, infrastructure expansion, and spatial integration. The management of urban baboon populations in municipalities, such as the City of Cape Town and the Overstrand Municipality, is a complex issue driven by competing priorities. The debate centres on balancing the protection of a native species with the economic and infrastructural demands of expanding urban centres.

Nowhere is this competition for land more fierce than on the Cape Peninsula. The conflict between high-end residential and commercial expansion and local chacma baboons in Simon’s Town stems from a systemic failure and lack of political will to integrate wildlife-proof infrastructure into new developments and urban management.  

The rhetoric that the Simon’s Town baboon troops, specifically the Waterfall and Seaforth troops, offer no ecological or genetic value is heavily disputed by conservation biologists, geneticists, and environmental organizations. Presented by city authorities and their consultant experts as a humane alternative to culling, their latest proposal involves capturing and relocating the Waterfall and Seaforth baboons to a purpose-built enclosure at Kogelfontein. This strategy is facing heavy criticism for prioritising urban expansion and expensive property development over natural habitat preservation.

A WAPFSA member and others have submitted several requests to various government authorities using the Promotion of Access to Information Act regarding the Waterfall and Seaforth baboons, and the construction and permitting of the so called urban wild life centre at Kogelfontein. 

While these PAIA processes are underway, WAPFSA continues to welcome, and encourage voluntary transparency in response to our questions listed below: 

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

IMMEDIATE MORATORIUM ON FISHING FOR ALL PELAGIC SPECIES FOR AT LEAST SIX MONTHS

WAPFSA, supported by a coalition of conservation organisations, respectfully yet urgently requests that the Honourable Minister implement an immediate moratorium on all pelagic species fishing within South African marine waters for a minimum of six months. 

To be effective, this moratorium must be comprehensive applying across all fishing sectors and methods, and encompassing both small and large pelagic species, including directed fisheries and incidental catches. Given the severity of the ecological risk, minor reductions in sardine catches or short-term, single-species suspensions are insufficient. A full moratorium is necessary to preserve marine food webs, protect dependent species, and secure the long-term livelihoods and food security of vulnerable coastal communities.

Images: Pete Oxford

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

THE PERMANENT REMOVAL OF THE SIMONS TOWN BABOONS RAISES SERIOUS QUESTIONS OF ENVIRONMENTAL GOVERNANCE, PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND CONSERVATION

OPEN LETTER

WAPFSA member, the Green Group Simons Town, addressed an open letter to the Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill Lewis on the 29 September 2026.

READ THE FULL LETTER:

Ironically, while our Table Mountain has been chosen as the centrepiece of the latest UNESCO WorldHeritage Series coin from France’s Monnaie de Paris, with the design paying tribute to the extraordinary CapeFloral Region, the City is going to soon remove about 60 chacma baboons from that landscape.

Green Group Simonstown NPC (GGST) has been actively engaged in environmental and biodiversity protection, wildlife advocacy, and public participation processes affecting the Cape Peninsula, False Bay, and surrounding ecosystems of Cape Town. The organisation therefore has a direct and substantial interest indecisions that may affect the ecological health, environmental resilience, biodiversity, and future sustainability of the Cape Town region and the well-being of its communities.

GGST is writing to raise serious concerns about the City of Cape Town’s decision to permanently remove the Waterfall and Seaforth chacma baboon troops from Simon’s Town and place them in permanent captivity at theCity’s Urban Wildlife Centre at Kogelfontein.

The City’s Action Plan provides for the animals to be captured, assessed and moved into purpose-built enclosures, with healthy males vasectomised. Once removed, they will not return to their former free-ranging lives. This decision deserves scrutiny well beyond the immediate question of baboon management. It raises fundamental questions about environmental governance, public participation, animal welfare, conservation andthe City’s responsibilities within one of the world’s most important biodiversity landscapes.

UNESCO World Heritage recognised and is today celebrating this area for its Outstanding Universal Value, includingits exceptional biodiversity and ongoing ecological and biological processes. The baboons are part of this livinglandscape.

UNESCO has already been alerted to concerns about the baboon population, and in December 2025 confirmed that it had received the JTT’s updated Action Plan and was reviewing it with IUCN.

GGST, which was elected by the Simon’s Town community and supporting organisations to represent themon the Cape Peninsula Baboon Advisory Group (BAG) established by the Joint Task Team (City of Cape Town, SANParks and CapeNature), has resigned from this Advisory Group. We made clear our position: “Wedid not join the Advisory Group to lend legitimacy to decisions we fundamentally question. We joined because we believed participation meant that evidence, community experience and viable alternatives would influence the outcome. For approximately seven months, we repeatedly raised the same fundamental concerns. We have not seen those concerns meaningfully reflected in the decisions being implemented. We won’t endorsesomething that, in our view, amounts to a zoo.”

We are not alone. The Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa (WAPFSA), a national network ofwildlife, conservation, environmental and community organisations, has repeatedly opposed the permanent captivity of the Simon’s Town baboons. It argues that the plan disregards their natural free-ranging existenceand that evidence-based coexistence measures should be implemented, evaluated and transparently monitored before permanent captivity is considered. WAPFSA has also put forward alternatives including secure waste systems, targeted spatial exclusion, non-lethal behavioural management, community coexistence measures and habitat interventions.

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

South Africa’s Draft National Leopard Conservation Strategy and Action Plan 2026

South Africa’s constitutional guarantee to protect the environment requires balancing ecological integrity with human development, but equating “sustainable use” with trophy hunting undermines the broader mandate of intergenerational equity and biodiversity protection. 

Legal analysts and conservation critics point out that treating wild animals merely as commercial commodities for selective, high-paying sport sidelines holistic ecological stewardship and prioritizes short-term economic gains for private landowners over systemic animal welfare and biodiversity health. 

Furthermore, South Africa’s higher courts such as in landmark rulings highlighted by the Constitutional Court have increasingly emphasized that the constitutional right to an ecologically sustainable environment cannot justify practices causing severe animal suffering or environmental degradation. Relying on trophy hunting as a core pillar of conservation distorts the true meaning of sustainability, which should instead foster non-consumptive ecotourism, ethical habitat preservation, and genuine community-based resource management that safeguards ecosystems for future generations. 

The Draft National Leopard Conservation Strategy and Action Plan 2026 has been published for public comment. The draft Strategy and Action Plan envisions acknowledging leopards as a vital component of the nation’s natural heritage, valued across cultures for their ecological, cultural and symbolic significance. 

The draft Strategy and Action Plan is supported by goals and strategic activities based on the species’ (a) ecological role, (b) social and cultural values, and (c) livelihoods and impacts of leopards.

WAPFSA Recommendations:

  1. The Legal and Scientific Deficit

We must highlight a core, ongoing crisis in South African biodiversity management. South Africa has not published a Non-Detriment Finding (NDF) for leopards since May 2015, yet the government continues to allocate and debate trophy hunting export quotas. This systemic gap places the country’s wildlife management in a complex legal and ethical deadlock.

The last formalized leopard NDF, gazetted in September 2015, explicitly concluded that international trade and trophy hunting posed a high risk to the survival of leopards in South Africa. This was driven by a lack of reliable population data, illegal killings, and poor harvest management. 

Under CITES regulations and South Africa’s National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, an export quota for an Appendix I species cannot legally be enforced without a current, scientifically backed NDF proving the trade isn’t detrimental. Despite this, the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) has not gazetted a new, finalized leopard NDF to justify recent quotas. 

  • Re-evaluate and Reduce Trophy Hunting Quotas

A comprehensive 2026 continent-scale assessment reveals that current CITES hunting quotas exceed sustainable limits in more than half of the trophy-hunting countries evaluated. 

Leopard population models dictate that the maximum safe offtake threshold is strictly 10% of the adult male population. 

South Africa should instantly audit and reduce hunting quotas to match empirical population data, capping annual harvests well below the 10% adult male threshold to prevent localized population collapses. 

  • Prioritize Corridor Connectivity & Habitat Restoration

Leopards have vanished from roughly 41% of their historical African range. Predictive models show that leopard density drops significantly near high-density human settlements, agricultural zones, and dense livestock farming, specifically sheep and goats. 

Conversely, leopard populations thrive where there is a high species richness of wild bovids and suids. Suids are stout, hoofed mammals with thick skin and prominent tusks. African species commonly hunted by large predators including the bushpig (Potamochoerus larvatus) and the common warthog (Phacochoerus africanus).

We need to shift focus from isolated protected areas to landscape-level habitat restoration and designated movement corridors to reconnect fragmented forest and savanna patches. Proactively restore populations of wild prey, ungulates, inside and outside protected boundaries to reduce the likelihood of leopards targeting domestic livestock. 

  • Establish Centralised, Standardised Monitoring Databases

National leopard trend lines are highly volatile and mask dangerous regional declines. For example, while some national datasets show an average annual increase of 2.6%, regional data shows areas such as KwaZulu-Natal are actively losing leopards at a rate of 3% per year, while data for the Eastern Cape remains entirely scarce. 

South Africa needs to fund and scale continuous, large-scale camera-trap surveys spanning 1500–3500 km². Consolidate this data into a centralised national population database, mirroring frameworks like the Cape Leopard Trust’s Leopard Data Portal in order to eliminate blind spots and enable adaptive, real-time management. 

      5. Revise Human-Wildlife Conflict and Translocation Protocols

Long-term tracking shows leopards possess incredible homing instincts. When a “problem animal” is trapped and translocated away from its home range, it routinely attempts to navigate back, steering it directly through dense human/agricultural landscapes. This increases the frequency and severity of human-leopard conflictrather than reducing it.

These are some practical considerations: 

  • Treat capture and translocation as an absolute last resort.
  • If an animal must be captured and released, it should remain within its immediate home range.
  • Invest heavily in non-lethal community-driven deterrence, compensating farmers for livestock protection, and addressing the cultural use of leopard skins through sustainable alternatives.  READ FULL SUBMISSION:

Image Credit: Brian Abrahamson

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

A Regulatory Blind Spot Cape Town’s Missing Urban Wildlife Management By-law

The City of Cape Town is in the process of promulgating the Animal Keeping By-law. The By-law relates to, inter alia, the management of all animal related matters, permitting of animals, responsibilities of pet owners, provisions supporting the essential processes in dealing with vicious attacks by dogs on persons and other animals, stray animals on roads and in public open spaces, responsibilities of owners related to the keeping of animals and bees, deals with nuisances and complaints that involves animals, impounding of animals and ancillary Pound matters within the City of Cape Town.

In terms of section 17 of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, Act 32 of 2000, the public and interested parties or groups are given the opportunity to submit comments, recommendations or input of the draft by-law update to the municipality before the 29 September 2026.  

WAPFSA focuses strictly on the protection of the welfare and wellbeing of wild animals. The City of Cape Town’s proposal to permanently confine indigenous wild baboons in cages coupled with the ongoing use of wild animals in circuses and entertainment displays exposes critical welfare concerns and policy contradictions within the new animal-keeping by-laws.

Download WAPFSA Submission:

Reference Document 1:

GLOBAL ORGANISATIONS URGE VANTARA TO PERMANENTLY END WILD ANIMAL IMPORTS

GLOBAL ORGANISATIONS URGE VANTARA TO PERMANENTLY END WILD ANIMAL IMPORTS

Leading animal welfare and conservation non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have called on Vantara, the private megazoo funded by India’s Reliance Industries, to end wild animal imports permanently. The NGOs are responding to Vantara’s recently published announcements to restrict wildlife imports, support in situ wild animal sanctuaries and conservation, enhance governance and due diligence, and address concerns about its practices and standards.

Vantara’s recent announcement follows years of comprehensive investigations and reports by civil society organizations and independent journalists regarding the megazoo’s operations. Vantara has imported more than 60,000 live animals belonging to some 2,000 species – an unprecedented level of animal imports within a four year period. Its acquisitions include some of the world’s rarest, most endangered, and iconic species, including great apes, such as Tapanuli orangutans, Spix’s macaws, Galapagos iguanas and Shoebills.

In response to sustained international pressure, Vantara has come under intense monitoring by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The NGOs “welcome the announced change in focus towards in situ conservation and the 12 months moratorium on further imports”, but “strongly advocate a clearer, stronger approach to future acquisitions, a profound and long-term commitment to advancing global efforts to end the capture of animals from the wild for collections or public display, and meaningful support for the organisations and relevant authorities working to protect wild species in situ”. 

They point out that exemptions Vantara has included to its moratorium risk allowing the future import of animals originating from commercial facilities, animals presented as captive-bred but likely sourced from the wild, and animals from unverified – and possibly illegal – sources. Further, a limited-time moratorium may signal to exporters that imports could continue in the future, and lead wildlife traders and traffickers to stockpile animals in anticipation of the moratorium’s expiration.

The NGOs call on Vantara to transform the announced temporary 12-month pause into a permanent end to all wild animal imports, with exceptions strictly limited to independently verified conservation or welfare emergencies. Specifically, they urge Vantara to implement the following:

  • End Commercial Incentives: Halt all direct or indirect payments including “donations” that could be interpreted as being linked to animal acquisitions. Payments may fuel commercial exploitation, incentivize wild capture, and encourage the mislabeling of wild-caught animals as “rescued” or “captive-bred.”
  • True Rescue & Sanctuary Standards: Adopt strict, transparent criteria for what constitutes a legitimate “rescue,” implement a no-breeding policy, and refrain from commercial trade, exchanges, or acquisitions for public display.
  • Full Public Transparency: Publish a complete, regularly updated inventory, reviewed by independent experts, of all animals held at Vantara — including origins, transfers, births, and deaths.
  • Independent Oversight: Guarantee accountability and transparency, eliminate potential conflicts of interest on Vantara’s advisory boards, and ensure full protection for civil society, journalists, and whistleblowers.
  • Prioritize In Situ Support & Repatriation: Support independently-run NGOs in  countries of origin to protect wildlife habitats and help ensure high-standards of care in reputable local rescue centers, while evaluating options to repatriate animals to their native range States where appropriate. The NGOs stress that “Wildlife is part of a country’s natural heritage”.
  • Address compliance concerns: Address concerns and adopt remedial measures on all matters relating to the acquisition of animals, including their origin.

Upcoming CITES meeting to review compliance concerns

The NGO call comes ahead of the 81st meeting of the CITES Standing Committee, due to take place on 2-6 November in Geneva, Switzerland. The Standing Committee will consider the Indian government’s response to findings of an official CITES Secretariat verification mission to India conducted in September 2025. The mission’s findings expressed concerns about the large volume of imports of strictly protected species to Vantara and potential violations of international trade regulations. 

The organizations stress that “at a time when wildlife trade interests are often well-financed and well-connected, and when legal and regulatory measures are underfunded […],  institutions with substantial resources and influence should support efforts to protect wildlife in its natural habitats, rather than incentivise further exploitation“. They urge CITES member States and Vantara to ensure full transparency, robust legal compliance, and genuine accountability in order to protect threatened and traded species globally.

Background information:

Image: Ban Animal Trading 2021

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

THERE IS A FUNDED COEXISTENCE ALTERNATIVE TO THE PERMANENT CAPTIVITY OF THE WATERFALL AND SEAFORTH TROOPS AT KOGELFONTEIN URBAN WILDLIFE CENTRE ON THE CAPE PENINSULA

On 18 September 2026 WAPFSA addressed an urgent letter to the City of Cape Town and representatives of SANParks, CapeNature and the Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Joint Task Team.

The Wildlife Animal Protection Forum of South Africa (WAPFSA) is a national network of thirty South African organisations, established in 2017 to engage government on matters concerning the conservation and protection of wild animals and the natural environments in which they live. Its members work across animal protection, conservation, environmental justice, law, governance, climate justice and community advocacy. WAPFSA’s positions are informed by robust science, constitutional and environmental law, ethical and compassionate conservation practices, and a commitment to humane coexistence between people and wild animals.

WAPFSA writes to remind the City of Cape Town, SANParks and CapeNature and representatives of the Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Joint Task Team that there is a viable alternative to capturing the Waterfall and Seaforth baboon troops and confining them permanently at the proposed Kogelfontein Urban Wildlife Centre.

The alternative is an appropriately designed and located baboon-proof fence, developed and assessed with the benefit of Dr Dave Gaynor’s expertise, together with the waste-management, monitoring and community measures needed to make the intervention effective.

Image: ©Green Group Simonstown

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

WAPFSA SUBMISSION SOUTH AFRICA’S DRAFT NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY STRATEGY AND ACTION PLAN (2026-2035)

This document discusses South Africa’s draft National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP 2026–2035), highlighting biodiversity conservation issues, global frameworks, and advocacy efforts by the Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa.

South Africa’s Biodiversity Policy Challenges

South Africa’s draft NBSAP 2026–2035 faces criticism for not aligning with global biodiversity goals and global standards like the Kunming-Montreal Framework.

Domestic policies are seen as watering down international commitments, with severe ecosystem threats and declining biodiversity.

Global Biodiversity Framework and International Commitments

The Kunming-Montreal Framework aims to halt biodiversity loss by 2030 but relies on voluntary targets with limited enforcement.

Many global targets, including the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, were not achieved by 2020, due to poor monitoring and lack of national implementation.

This is WAPFSA Full Submission:

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

STEVE SMITH IN MEMORIAM

STEVE SMIT – IN MEMORIAM

Steve Smit, a beloved member of the Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa (WAPFSA) also affectionately known as KwaZulu-Natal’s famous “Monkey Man,” passed away on Wednesday, 12 August 2026, after a brave, well-fought battle with cancer. 

His passing has left the global conservation, and KwaZulu Natal communities deeply heartbroken, we collectively mourn a legendary champion for wildlife. Over a span of thirty years, he dedicated his entire life to the protection, rescue, and rehabilitation of urban wildlife, leaving behind an unforgettable legacy as a fierce voice for the voiceless.

Conceptualized in 2017, WAPFSA took shape as a collaborative network in 2018 before gaining full formalization in 2019. However, founding members Michele Pickover, Executive Director of the EMS Foundation, and  Steve Smit shared a close professional alliance that extends all the way back to 2003.

Michele Pickover interviewed Steve Smit in 2003 as part of her research report titled: The Environmental Movement in South Africa – An Analysis of Animal Based Issues, Campaigns and Organisations. On page 365 of her report she stated that there were no animal rights organisations in South Africa. Five years later, on the 8 March 2008, Animal Rights Africa (ARA) was officially launched marking an unprecedented milestone in African animal rights advocacy. The two key figures and co-founders of Animal Rights Africa were of course, Steve Smit and Michele Pickover. 

Steve Smit and Carol Booth founded the Monkey Helpline in 1995.  A dedicated non-profit organisation responding to thousands of rescue call-outs annually across KwaZulu-Natal. The EMS Foundation has played a pivotal role in supporting this successful wildlife rescue and rehabilitation operation by providing substantial financial backing to the Monkey Helpline Rehabilitation and Sanctuary Centre to ensure the long-term survival of rescued Vervet monkeys in South Africa.  

Steve Smit was also an important member of the WAPFSA Primate Working Group. This group focuses on the welfare, ethical management, and protection of indigenous primates in South Africa including amongst other, the chacma baboon. Over the past few years Steve Smit has been particularly outspoken against the current chacma baboon management policies adopted on the Cape Peninsula and the Overstrand regions of the Western Cape. 

WAPFSA honours the incredible life and profound legacy of our dear friend and colleague Steve Smit. Steve was a legendary, tireless champion, a fierce voice for the voiceless, and a true pillar of ethical conservation in South Africa. While we deeply mourn this monumental loss, his fierce spirit, unwavering dedication, and decades of compassionate activism will forever guide our collective mission to protect the wild. Rest in peace, Steve; your vital work continues through the endless lives you saved and the network you helped build. 

IMAGE: Steve Smit and Michele Pickover circa 2006

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.

The Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa Requests an Urgent Independent Health and Well-Being Assessment for Opal

The Wildlife Animal Protection Forum South Africa Requests an Urgent Independent Health and Well-Being Assessment for Opal

WAPFSA is hereby politely requesting urgent assistance from Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, the mandated regulatory authority in KwaZulu-Natal that issues permits regulating the housing, movement, and care of wild animals to ensure compliance with animal welfare and environmental legislation. 

WAPFSA is requesting your permission is granted for an urgent in-person independent, professional assessment of Opal’s physical health and wellbeing.  The assessment to be carried out at the Natal Zoological Gardens. The independent wildlife experts will be appointed by primate expert members of WAPFSA, the professional details of the experts, the details of the methodology of the assessments and the written results of the assessments will be shared with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife. 

READ FULL LETTER:

Image: Opal – ©Ban Animal Trading

©WAPFSA 2026. All Rights Reserved.