The poachers were mostly not organised criminals selling various body-parts of the animals for profit as is a common problem facing wildlife in other countries - they were mostly indigenous Namibians living on communal lands, for whom poaching was often the only means to feed their family. They hunted the animals for food.
This problem of poachers has virtually been eliminated and currently, NImibia has the largest population of free roaming black rhinos and cheetahs, an elephant population of 20,000 (coming from 13,000) and 130 lions (coming from 24).
So - what happened?
In simple terms - those who were previously poaching animals, were hired to become game guards. This provided them with the income they previously lacked, that enabled them to feed their families without the need to hunt wildlife. The project has been a huge success, partially because the ex-poachers simply have the best skills and experience in tracking wild animals - skills and experience they required to hunt the animals.
Previous attempts from the Namibian government to 'come down hard' on the poachers with severe sanctions had no results - because despite an incentive to change their behaviour, the cause of the behaviour was not addressed, and thus the criminal activity persisted.
The Equal Money System predicts that if everyone is provided with the goods and services he/she needs to live a dignified life, that crime will drop extensively. Why? Because it immediately addresses the need for crime - which in many cases is a lack.
Certain forms of crime originate from internal conflict, which is misdirected unto others. This point will be addressed through the transformation of the labour system, where each one will only require to work for a limited amount of years while completing their internship, after which labour is strictly on a voluntary basis. Considering that work conditions are often the source of dissatisfaction in people's lives, as well as the fact that working takes up most of people's time, robbing individuals of the needed time to address their inner world and experiences. With sufficient time and support, individuals will be able to take responsibility for their inner world, removing another big source of crime.
So - yes, Namibia is on to something - so is the Equal Money System - go check it out.
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