11 Jul 2016

President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama has called for development of a coordinated approach involving customs, judiciary, prosecutors, private sector and the civil society, to fight trans-boundary wildlife crimes in the SADC region.

Addressing a special SADC ministerial conference on illegal wildlife trade in Gaborone on Friday, President Khama said illegal trade in wildlife could result in extinction of iconic species.

“Our continent is a major source for illegally acquired wildlife and their derivatives. The elephants, rhinos and pangolins are being killed in large numbers to meet rising international demand for commodities such as ivory, rhino horn, scales and meat,” he said. 

Furthermore, President Khama who is also the SADC chairperson, stated that the crime estimated to be a profitable business worth billions was harmful to tourism and ecosystems.

“Efforts can no longer be directed only at stopping front line poachers and traffickers. We also have to empower our law enforcement agencies to eliminate corruption, which fuels wildlife crime and to seize the assets which accrue from illegal wildlife trade,” President Khama said.

He also called for establishment of a dedicated judiciary system to deal with wildlife crime.

The President expressed discomfort that there was still no formal implementation strategy to address wildlife crime even though the SADC Protocol on Wildlife Conservation and Law Enforcement directed countries to take necessary measures to enforce legislation governing conservation of wildlife and natural resources

“The lack of such strategy has, without any doubt, proved to be a challenge and hinders our collective ability to implement workable actions to counter the illegal trade in wildlife and wildlife products,” he said.

President Khama pointed out that the approval of SADC LEAP Strategy by Council of Ministers in March was an important step in the right direction.

Developed through a consultative approach, the SADC LEAP Strategy represents collective desire by the region to eradicate illegal wildlife trade. The Strategy programme areas include the enhancement of legislation and judicial processes, minimisation of wildlife crime and illegal trade, integration of people and nature, sustainable trade and use of natural resources, and improvement and strengthening of field protection.

The executive secretary of SADC, Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax stated that the objective of the conference was to generate a better understanding of the problem of illegal trade in wildlife in the region and identify measures that could be undertaken to address the problem effectively.

“Illegal wildlife trade remains a major challenge in our region,” she said.

She said SADC countries are home to a population of 300 000 elephants, which is 64 per cent of the continent’s herd.

Furthermore, she said the region has the largest remaining population of rhinos, and is also home to other species like lions, buffalos, kudus, zebras and antelopes. ENDS