Rotary worldwide to help save rhino

STAFF REPORTER

THE plight of the rhino will be taken up by Rotarians worldwide thanks to a resolution at district level motivated by the Rotary Club of Kenton-on-Sea.

Last Friday the Kenton Rotary Club proposed the following resolution at the Rotary International District Conference in East London: "To harness the networking capacity, power and influence of the Rotary World and the World Wildlife Fund of South Africa (WWFSA) to save the African rhinoceros from extinction and to secure the future of the species.”

Following an informative and emotive presentation by world renowned veterinarian and expert on rhino conservation, Dr William Fowlds, and a talk by Dr Morne du Plessis, chief executive of the WWFSA, more than 250 delegates present unanimously adopted the resolution.

RHINO ON HIS MIND: Past president of Rotary Club of Kenton-on-Sea, Bruce Steele-Gray, was the driving force behind a new resolution to help save the rhino at the Rotary International District Conference in East London last week Picture: SUPPLIED

This will be taken forward to the Rotary International Convention to be held in Lisbon early next year where there will be over 35 000 delegates in attendance. Many of the delegates will be from the Far East where the biggest market for rhino horn exists.

The presentation was led the day before World Rhino Day by past president Bruce Steele-Gray, who was the driving force behind the resolution and also organised the speakers.

Since then four rhino at Lalibela Game Reserve and seven rhino at Hluhluwe Game Reserve have fallen prey to poaching.

Kenton Rotary Club recently donated R23 250 to Brent Cooke of the Chipembere Rhino Foundation in aid of tracking collars for rhino.

At the handover, Fowlds talked about the fight to save the rhino at Kariega Game Reserve after a brutal poaching attack in March, in which two rhino were killed.

When asked what the Kenton Rotary Club could do to help, he answered "create awareness across the world”.