There is more illegal ivory than elephants in three key ivory trading countries in West Africa, according to a new report launched Monday (15. December) by TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network and WWF, the conservation organization.
TRAFFIC investigators visited 9 cities in Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Senegal and found more than 4.000 kg of ivory on public display; a volume that represents the ivory of more than 760 elephants. According to recent IUCN data there may not be any more than 543 elephants in these countries.
– These studies show just a snapshot of the problem, said Tom Milliken, director of TRAFFIC East-Southern Africa and co-author of the report. – When we factor in all of the uncontrolled manufacturing, buying and selling over a year, these numbers climb to frightening dimensions, added he.
The TRAFFIC report “More Ivory than Elephants: Domestic Ivory Markets in Three West African Countries” highlights that these unregulated markets are the principal forces driving elephant poaching.
Much of the ivory found on sale came from the war torn Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Central African Republic and Gabon. These countries make up Africas most troubled region for elephant conservation.
The principal buyers of this ivory are tourists and business people from the United States, China, Italy, Japan and Korea and even diplomatic staff in some instances.
The report also found that inadequate legislation and poor law enforcement in Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Senegal are threatening the survival of elephants in these countries. All three governments are in breach of ivory market control requirements under international regulations governing the trade in endangered wildlife species (CITES).
Furthermore, the wildlife authorities responsible for implementing CITES are systematically barred from the ports of entry and exit.
– Not only is there a lack of political will to implement CITES, allowing traders to act with immunity from prosecution, corruption is preventing effective controls on the ivory trade, said Dr Susan Lieberman, head of WWF Species programme.
– It is time that Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Senegal took concrete steps to effectively implement CITES in their countries, noted she.
The report says the situation in Nigeria is the most alarming, with higher volumes of ivory identified than in a previous undercover survey carried out in 1999. This country is already facing possible sanctions under CITES because of concerns about its ivory trade.
If Nigeria fails to comply with CITES requirements to regulate internal trade in ivory by March 2004, it could find that all legal trade in CITES listed wildlife species to and from the country is suspended.
TRAFFIC and WWF hope that the findings of the surveys will prompt governments to take urgent and positive action to bring the domestic ivory trade under control in these countries.
The full TRAFFIC Online report No 8 titled More Ivory than Elephants: Domestic Ivory Markets in Three West African Countries by Marianne Courouble, Francis Hurst and Tom Milliken is available at www.traffic.org
For further information please contact:
Tom Milliken, Director of TRAFFIC East/South Africa on 2634252533
Maija Sirola, Communications Co-ordinator TRAFFIC on 441223277427
Dr Susan Lieberman, Director of WWF Species programme on 447769740311
Claire Doole, Head of Press, WWF International on 0041794773564
Til top
Tilbage til Internationale pressemeddelelser
