GABORONE, April 14 (Xinhua) -- Botswana on Wednesday night reiterated its donation of 500 elephants to Mozambique made towards the tail end of 2018, saying the translocation of the large mammals in nigh.
"We look forward to their (elephants) subsequent translocation to Mozambique in the near future," said President Mokgweetsi Masisi at the state banquet on the occasion of the state visit to Botswana by the President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi held in Botswana's capital, Gaborone.
Masisi said Botswana is very keen to see the elephants finally roaming their new habitat thus the forests in the Mozambican territory.
National Administration for the Conservation Areas (ANAC), a state institution responsible for the conservation of the biodiversity in Mozambique, recently reported that Botswana's neighboring country lost 10,000 elephants since 2009 due to a variety of reasons including poaching.
Despite losing close to 350 elephants between 2020 and last year due to suspected cyanobacteria toxins, Botswana is still believed to be home to 130, 000 African elephants, more than any other country on the continent. ■