Rhino horn demand in Vietnam drives ongoing poaching in Africa

Rhinos in Africa have been under threat from an illicit demand for their horn.

Reasons for this demand are rooted in Asian traditional medicine, but with modern medicines such as paracetamol many see this belief as a myth. For the last 17 years, two or three rhinos have been poached for their horns in South Africa.

The horns are then smuggled by Vietnamese criminal syndicates mostly by plane to Vietnam and then either consumed there or trans-shipped to China.

Image: IMAGE – Frans van Heerden / Pexels

Produced By: Anita Diamond

Featured In Story: Dr Michael Smith – Journalist and Griffith University PhD researcher

First aired on The Wire, Tuesday 13 May 2025