Minister calls for adoption of UN resolution on wildlife trade

Ahead of United Nations General Assembly billed to hold later in the year, Minister of Environment, Mrs. Laurentia L. Mallam has called for the adoption of resolution on illegal trade in wildlife.
Mallam made the call during the ministerial dialogue on illegal trade in wildlife at a special event of the first session of the United Nations Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya.
The minister also said there was the need to create a special window under the Global Environment Facility, GEF, for the protection of endangered species.
Speaking further, Mallam advised that “we have to continue pursuing the three – pronged strategy of handling the poaching and illegal wildlife crisis and this entails community empowerment, improving wildlife governance and discouraging demand for wildlife products. The political momentum built here needs to be sustained and we call for the adoption of a resolution on illegal trade in wildlife at the UN General Assembly later in the year.”
She added that the country had set in place institutional framework and strategies that have given impetus to wildlife crime control.
“In line with INTERPOL guidelines, we are expanding the membership of our inter-agency committee on the Convention on International Trade and Endangered Species, CITES, to upgrade it to the National Environmental Security Task force, NEST.
“Others include the designation of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency, NESREA, as CITES enforcement authority. The establishment of the National Inter – agency Committee on CITES Enforcement and through its synergistic efforts, seizures of illicit wildlife products were made able to achieve for the first time, a number of wildlife crime convictions in our law courts,” she stated.