A comprehensive new report has revealed a worrying 11.2% drop in Africa’s estimated southern white rhino populations between the end of 2023 and the end of 2024 although populations of black rhino have increased by 5.2%.
According to the IUCN Species Survival Commission’s African Rhino Specialist Group and TRAFFIC, by the end of 2024, the continent held an estimated 22 540 rhinos (6 788 black and 15 752 white).
The drop in southern white rhinos, from an estimated 17 464, was mostly a consequence of a 15.2% decline in South Africa – home to 90% of the continent’s overall population.
Poaching remained the greatest threat with 420 white rhinos poached in South Africa. Just under half (47%) of those losses occurred in the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in KwaZulu-Natal. This followed a shift in poaching pressures after a dehorning programme was implemented in the Kruger National Park.
The IUCN said, despite the slight increase in black rhino numbers, the species remained classified as critically endangered due to ongoing poaching and habitat loss.
Overall, rhino populations on the continent declined by 6.7% in 2024. In addition to poaching, the report identified the absence of updated surveys in populations across Uganda, Zambia, Mozambique and some provinces of South Africa, together with possible previous population overestimations, as potential reasons for the drop.
The report highlighted a worrying increase in the rate of rhinos lost to poaching in the first quarter of 2025. In South Africa, 91 rhinos were killed for their horns by the end of March.
Efforts to curb poaching and illegal trade in rhino horn continue to be hampered by corruption, limited resources, slow prosecutorial processes and the presence of sophisticated, well-armed syndicates, according to the report.
“Addressing the abovementioned challenges requires political will, improved funding, modern tools, community involvement and more tangible community benefits to protect rhinos and support long-term conservation.”
The IUCN said key initiatives to support the recovery of populations include African Parks’ Rewild Rhino programme – which aims to rewild 2 000 rhinos across the continent by 2034 – and the African Rhino Conservation Framework (2025-2030). The framework marks what the IUCN describes as a shift towards a “people-centred, rights-based approach.”
The framework seeks to integrate indigenous people and local communities into rhino conservation strategies.
