ISLAMABAD: Pakistan generated more than Rs1.83 billion from Markhor and Ibex trophy hunting between 2023 and 2025, according to details presented by the Ministry of Climate Change in the Senate.
The revenue is shared between local communities and provincial wildlife departments, while the federal government receives no direct income from the trophy hunting programme.
According to the ministry’s data, trophy hunting in Balochistan generated Rs760 million in revenue over the two-year period.
Gilgit-Baltistan generated more than Rs620 million, while trophy hunting of Markhor in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa brought in Rs447.8 million.
In Sindh, Ibex trophy hunting generated approximately Rs3.1 million during the period under review.
Together, these figures brought the reported revenue from Markhor and Ibex trophy hunting to more than Rs1.83 billion.
How trophy hunting revenue is distributed
The Ministry of Climate Change told the Senate that the federal government does not receive any revenue from the trophy hunting programme.
Under the existing policy, 80% of the hunting revenue is allocated to local communities, while the remaining 20% goes to the relevant provincial wildlife departments.
The system is intended to ensure that communities living in areas where trophy hunting takes place benefit financially from the programme.
No central audit mechanism
Despite the revenue-sharing arrangement, the ministry revealed that there is no central-level system to audit the distribution of funds provided to local communities.
According to the details presented to the Senate, the respective provincial wildlife departments distribute the funds among local populations.
The absence of a central auditing mechanism means there is no system at the federal level to independently track how the community share of trophy hunting revenue is distributed.
The figures presented in the Senate highlight the substantial financial value generated through Pakistan’s trophy hunting programme, particularly in regions with Markhor and Ibex populations.
