Spud:
I've been hunting Namibia multiple times a year for the past twelve and hunted most in the NW part of the country, a couple hours south of Etosh NP the western highlands, in a conservancy area that covers a little over 750,000 acres. My wife and I have driven/toured most of the country and love the place, love the people and for a time, even entertained having a second home there. Guessing we've "lived" there for a combined total of just under three years. All that said, I still don't know "everything" about the country, but stay in touch with numerous friends we've made there. Last time we were there was this past Aug (2019).
The entire country has been in a drought of varying degrees for the past 4-5 years with the worst point in the last 135 years, this past year. They (entire country) have lost several hundred thousand head of cattle and untold head of what they call "small stock" (sheep/goats). The issue is not a lack of drinking water for the game and livestock because it is supplied by bore holes (wells), its there is NOTHING for them to eat.
Last year (2018), game ranchers on the high fence properties were cutting the tops out of the acacia trees, grinding them up and mixing in a grass called lucerne and molasses and pressing it into pellets. The hope was to at least get the game a little food to get them thru 2018. Trouble in 2019 was with virtually no appreciable rain again, now there aren't even acacia tree tops left to cut and grind. The guys with the high fence ranches pretty much were left with no option but to cut the fences and open the gates in the hopes the game would be able to find food or be able to "move" and at least survive.
This year, the game ranchers were even having a difficult time getting permits to even cull. Those permits are required to be able to legally resell the cull meat to the local markets. The reason the government was limiting the culling permits was the meat was competing with all the beef being sold before it died and driving those prices down.
On this past trip this Aug, my wife and I spent two nights in a blind overlooking a waterhole hoping to kill a some hyena. Both nights, we only counted a total of six mountain zebra and six gemsbok for the entire night, both nights. I spent a week sitting in that same blind at night in Aug 2018 and counted over 100 zebra and 100 gemsbok, dozens of warthog, duiker, steinbok, jackal etc. every night BEFORE MIDNIGHT and just stopped counting.
I do know they have gotten a little rain this year with the "rainiest" months coming up. The worry now is, the ground is so dry, if the rains come hard and heavy a large amount of it will just run off and not soak in. While it might be enough for the grasses to germinate and sprout, the question will be will there be enough follow-on rains to get to grow more than just ankle high.
I do NOT claim to have upto the minute first hand knowledge of every square kilometer of a country the approximate size of the state of Texas and some areas may have gotten more rain than others, but bottom line is, in my personal view, it's going to take a couple of years with back to back even "normal" rainfall for the game to really recover.
It absolutely kills me to say the above because a do love the county and the people there and I honestly do wish them well. My only advice would be if you still want to go, by all means go, it is still a fantastic place for sightseeing. It's safe and locals are friendly. Hunting could be very challenging though.
