South Africa Pioneers Innovative Wildlife Conservation Bond to Protect Black Rhinos and Support Local Communities

In the 1960’s, there were 100,000 black rhinos living near thorny thickets in the bushlands of South Africa, but poaching and loss of habitat have led to steep declines in their numbers in recent years. Conservation efforts have helped the rhino population rebound from 2,400 in 1995 to more than 5,600 today. Yet every day, rhinos are slaughtered for their horns and conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems face an estimated financing gap of an average of $711 billion per year.