Environment and Tourism Minister Pohamba Shifeta officially inaugurated the anti-poaching patrol camp west of Etosha National Park. The camp was constructed to the tune of N$1 million with co-financing by the Global Environment Facility and UNDP through Strengthening the Capacity of Protected Area System to Address New Management Challenges” (PASS) project and a contribution by Yahoo! Japan. Shifeta believes that the patrol camp will significantly impact in the fight against poaching of Rhinos and Elephants in Etosha National Park. This year 20 elephants and 27 rhinos were killed while last year 60 rhinos and 101 elephants died as result of poaching. Anti-poaching staff, which includes security forces from NAMPOL, NDF and officials from Environment and Tourism Ministry, will be deployed at the patrol camp. Etosha National Park is one of the areas which are seriously damaged by poaching. The size of Etosha, which covers a total surface area of about 2 227 hectares with a boundary fence of about 850 km, makes law enforcement such as patrolling and arresting poachers and anti-poaching operations challenging. The new patrol camp will be fully equipped with a water provision system and a solar power generator, will house game patrol units, rangers, and community members who participates in anti-poaching patrol activities. The improvement in camping facilities will ensure that the entire park is covered by patrol teams to prevent further poaching.