Windhoek - Namibia has placed a moratorium on the trade of all worked ivory from September 1, including the traditional carved trinkets worn by northern tribes for centuries known as ekipa or omakipa.

The move, which the government had threatened for months, aims to prevent the smuggling of ivory harvested from elephants killed by poachers.

"While recognizing omakipas (ekipa) as cultural objects and the provisions by CITES (the international Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) for Namibia to produce omakipas and to sell these within Namibia as personal effects, the government has also has to deal with the newly-carved omakipa from ivory of unknown origin," the ministry's permanent secretary Kalumbi Shangula explained.

The ban will remain in place until new laws governing the sale of ivory products are put in place, he said.

Omakipa are beautiful trinkets worn by the women, headmen and chiefs of the tribes of northern Namibia and southern Angola as armbands, on necklaces and on belts at festive occasions. The tradition dates back to the 19th century, with many of the original items now found in museums and private collections.

The moratorium goes further than CITES in banning the sale of omakipa, even within Namibia.

All curio shops and street vendors selling ivory products are also now required to register with the Ministry of Environment and Tourism at a fee of 500 Namibia dollars (65 US dollars).

Namibia, like most southern African countries, has a booming elephant population - thanks mainly to careful monitoring and the 1989 CITES ban on ivory trade, which acted as a disincentive to poaching.

The government of the desert state estimates its elephant population at over 16,000. Because of its good monitoring practices, Namibia was granted CITES permission for a once-off sale of stockpiled ivory to Japan in 1999 to earn money for further wildlife protection and research.

But poaching is still widespread in other parts of Africa that have lax wildlife programmes or are experiencing conflict, such as Democratic Republic of Congo. Namibia fears some of that ivory may be making its way into the hands of omakipa carvers.

In an effort to ensure everyone is working with legal material Namibia has announced plans to hand over some of the national stockpile - ivory from elephants that died in national parks - to the artisans.

"Certain communities that traditionally carve omakipa will be given ivory from our stockpiles," says Luisa Mupetami, deputy director for Wildlife Utilisation in the Ministry. "Each of these omakipa will then carry a certificate that will accompany them from production right through to sale and export, so that the importing countries can see this is a registered and legal item."

Horst Knop, owner of a jewellery shop in the capital Windhoek, welcomes the tougher stance, but fears carvers and street traders in the impoverished desert state will find it hard to fork out the registration fee.

"I see what they sell, because they frequently come to do business at my shop," Knop says, "and they don't really make loads of money."

Knop has some beautiful specimens of original omakipa in his store. He says regulating the trade in worked ivory will also help ensure that Namibia's heritage is not squandered.

"You don't really find old ekipa anymore. One day our children won't know what it is, because all of the pieces have gone to Europe or elsewhere, where people have money," he says. "Therefore I think it's good to regulate the trade and make sure every item is registered and certified."

Street vendors are wary of the new ruling, saying they are worried about losing income.

"If I don't get chosen to carve these ekipa, I will never be able to make a living from them. That is not right," Pandu Shiwedha, a young man who sells omakipa on a street market but is tightlipped about the origins of the ivory, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

"For how many months do we have to carry our goods without being able to sell them? The government must hurry to introduce the new law, otherwise we will go hungry." (dpa)