Savé Valley’s Hidden Poaching Apprenticeship
Children in communities near Zimbabwe's Savé Valley Conservancy are being recruited by adults to participate in illegal poaching. Driven by poverty and school fees, these minors are trained in hunting methods in exchange for small payments.
Why it matters
This highlights the intersection of extreme poverty, educational failure, and wildlife crime, showing how vulnerable youth are exploited in illicit economies.
Part of the money that helped a 16-year-old boy register for his O-level examinations this year came from poaching wildlife.
But his parents struggle to pay his fees, and he has repeatedly been sent home over unpaid tuition.
When examination registration came, money earned from illegal hunting helped close the gap.
“I love education, but my parents can’t afford school fees,” he said. “I have been sent home from school numerous times because of fees. Some of the money I paid for my O-level registration this year came from poaching.”
“I was arrested last year in October and received a warned-and-cautioned statement,” he said.
“At the time of my arrest, I promised myself I would not return to the business, but the poverty here is too much.”
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