Dog unit will operate in airport

A dog unit will operate in Maputo International Airport from September to combat the smuggling of banned wildlife products such as ivory and rhino horn.According to a report in today’s issue of the weekly newspaper “Domingo”, finishing touches are being made to the dog kennels including the installation of water and energy supplies. The unit will have facilities for six dogs and their handlers.

In its first phase, four breeds of dogs will be on patrol: Malinois Belgian Shepherd, German Shepherd, Dutch Shepherd, and Cocker Spaniel. All the dogs were bred in Tanzania. They will be led by four handlers and one instructor who received training in Tanzania.

According to “Domingo”, eventually dog units will be introduced to all the country’s international airports.Mozambique has become a conduit for smuggling ivory and rhino horn into Asia. As both species of African rhinoceros, the black and the white, are extinct in Mozambique, the rhino horns are very likely to have come from animals slaughtered by poachers in South Africa’s Kruger National Park. There are around ten thousand elephants left in Mozambique and they are under threat from poachers. However, much of the smuggled ivory also originates in neighbouring South Africa.

Despite the efforts of Mozambique’s police and customs service, Asian citizens are not infrequently caught in countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, or the autonomous territory of Hong Kong carrying ivory or rhino horn.