ZimParks invites bids to purchase the animals in its reserves, hoping private game reserves with cash and spare water and food will get them through the drought MASVINGO — As prolonged drought dries up water holes and grass, Zimbabwe’s government is taking an unprecedented step to keep the wildlife in its game reserves alive: It is selling the animals to private owners.Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority (ZimParks) has invited bids to purchase the animals in its reserves, hoping private game reserves with cash and spare water and fodder may be able to get them through the worst drought the country has seen in three decades.ZimParks has not specified what animals might be sold, their cost or whether they could be exported to other countries. But the country’s wildlife includes a range of big tourist draws, including elephants, rhinos and lions."We have asked individuals and private gamekeepers to step in and buy wild animals in the light of the drought, but the number of animals to...

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