PRESIDENT John Magufuli is expected to grace the launching of a book, which campaigns against the poaching of elephants and rhinoceroses.

The book, titled ‘Tembo, Faru wana haki ya kuishi’ (elephants and rhinos have a right to life), would be launched in Dar es Salaam tomorrow. It has been written by the Dar es Salaam Regional Peace Committee in response to the killing of wild animals in the country.

Last year, the government’s census revealed that the country lost a “catastrophic” 60 per cent of elephants in just five years. Tanzania’s elephant population is among the largest in the continent. The government released data showing that between 2009 and 2014, the number dropped from 109,051 to 43,330. When an annual birth rate of 5 was taken into account, the number of dead jumbos was put at 85,181.

The committee’s Chairman, Alhaj Alhad Mussa Salim, said the launching would be held at the Mwalimu Nyerere Convention Centre in Dar es Salaam. Putting it in a nutshell, Alhaj Salim said the book spoke on the rights of wild animals, including elephants and rhinos, which were being killed by poachers in big numbers.

He said the committee had visited the Serengeti National Park where members saw the extent to which such acts were affecting the country’s wildlife richness, hence coming up with the idea to write the book. “As committee, which compiles of leaders of different religions, we were touched by the killings and decided to write a book,” he stressed.

The book, to be issued free, would be translated into English and Chinese from Kiswahili to enable its distribution to other non-Kiswahili speaking countries. It contains many pictures on Tanzania’s tourist attractions and steps taken by stakeholders in fighting poachers.