NAPHA membership expansion to include recreational hunters or not?

[AfricaHunting.com]

Following some requests, NAPHA considers expanding its membership base to include not only professional hunters, but also “recreational” hunters. The term “recreational hunter” is a rather expansive definition that will include meat / “biltong” hunters, as well as community and "citizen" hunters.

Needless to say, these hunters were never considered when the Founding Members of our Association drafted our Aims, Objectives, Codes of Conduct and our Constitution. Including these hunting categories will entail a plethora of changes to our Association, our Aims, Objectives, Membership Categories, as well as our Constitution. Such changes, including changes to our operating procedures, responsibilities and daily operations would pose new challenges to our staff and to our Association. Together with these challenges, we could also gain a great many opportunities to expand our membership and give us a greater voice in promoting ethical hunting in general.

Any decision regarding this request by MET would have a profound influence on the future of NAPHA and the NAPHA Exco discussed these proposals, as well as the possible implications at great length and can identify numerous threats and opportunities to such a course of action. As a result of these discussions, three basic courses of action have been identified, namely:

• To turn down this request and continue to operate as an Association focused on its responsibilities towards the “Trophy” or rather “Conservation” hunting fraternity;
• To include the recreational hunters as members of our Association; or
• To establish a sub – “association” within NAPHA that shall be responsible for the administration and daily running of the recreational hunting affairs.

There will probably be quite a few more courses of action that our members might be able to identify and add to the existing list of courses of action.

In conclusion, we hereby invite feedback from our members as to their opinions and input as to the way forward for our Association. Would you support including the recreational hunter as part of our membership; would you prefer to see them have their own, independent association; or as a semi - autonomous sub-category within NAPHA?

If you have any alternative ideas or inputs, please feel free to add them to this list for discussion. Please apply very careful consideration to these proposals and carefully think about the implications thereof. Each one of you is a custodian of our Association and your decision on the way forward for NAPHA will determine, not only your future in the hunting industry, but also the future of your Association.



Source: Namibia Professional Hunting Association (NAPHA)

 

[sierraone]

I realize they are not asking me but it's posted here. I would leave NAPHA a professional association. If being a member is important to you, become a PH. Diluting the organization with every hunter who has ever taken an impala, may give you greater numbers, but it will not longer be a Professional Hunters organization. Most of the hunters in Namibia can start their own organization and open up the membership to anyone they choose.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Creative thinking.

 

[Coldswede]

I would probably either turn it down or create a daughter assosciation for recreational hunters. I think that your organization will not be able to maintain the professional image and it will lose its focus.