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CITES/INTERNATIONAL MEASURES MEASURES CITES/INTERNATIONAL
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EIA CoP18 RECOMMENDATIONS
1. CoP18 Prop. 10: Transfer of Zambian elephant population from EYES WIDE SHUT: SOUTHERN AFRICA’S Appendix I to Appendix II EIA recommends that CoP18 reject Zambia’s proposal Inconsistent seizure data downplays reality of poaching on the ELEPHANTS NOW IN THE FIRING LINE ground The proposal does not meet biological criteria to downlist due to 85% decline since 1980, only recently paused, and to lack of up-to-date population data. 1. Poaching to feed the ivory trade is one 7. There is increasing worldwide support The majority of African countries support the Zambia has never submitted an Annual Illegal Trade Report to of the most significant threats to the for the closure of ivory markets. The survival of wild elephants in Africa. world’s largest ivory consumer, China, CITES closure of domestic ivory markets (DIM) has already closed its legal ivory market 2. African savanna elephants declined in recognition of the devastating impact 2. CoP18 Prop. 11: Amendment to Annotation 2 pertaining to the by 30 per cent between 2007 and trade has on elephant populations. elephant populations of Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and 2014 primarily due to poaching. Forest South Africa and CoP18 Prop. 12 by Burkina Faso and others elephants in Central Africa have declined 8. The vast majority of African elephant to transfer elephant populations of Botswana, Namibia, South by 65 per cent. range states have called for the closure Africa and Zimbabwe from Appendix II to Appendix I of domestic ivory markets, through the 3. It is estimated that an average of 33,360 Cotonou Declaration of 2015. EIA recommends that CoP18 reject the proposal by elephants were killed each year between Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe and support the up-listing 2010-12. 9. Elephants are a migratory species and
MALI are therefore a shared resource requiring proposal submitted by Burkina Faso and other Parties. At NIGER 4. The international commercial ivory trade ERITREA coordinated regional conservation SENEGAL minimum, EIA urges CoP18 to support proposals that either CHAD trade was prohibited in 1989 under the BURKINA efforts. maintain or increase protection for elephants under the FASO Convention on the International Trade GUINEA GUINEA BISSAU BENIN in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna 10. Despite evidence that the 2008 one-off CITES framework. NIGERIA ETHIOPIA CÔTE SOUTH and Flora (CITES). However, the ban CITES sale fuelled demand, poaching SIERRA D'IVOIREGHANA C.A.R SUDAN Previous CITES one-off sales fuelled demand and rampant LEONE was undermined by two ‘’one-off’’ sales and ivory trafficking, efforts continue to TOGO CAMEROON LIBERIA poaching and trafficking SOMALIA authorised by CITES in 1999 and 2008. be made to undermine the protection of EQUATORIAL GUINEA REP. OF elephants and to re-open the ivory trade. Majority of African elephant range states oppose ivory trade CONGO UGANDA KENYA GABON 5. Between 2008 and 2017, 393,100kg of Ongoing poaching and trafficking in Southern Africa threatens DR CONGO ivory were seized globally, equivalent to 11. Zimbabwe has threatened to leave CITES regional populations,‘including those in Botswana RWANDA ivory sourced from more than 58,500 if it is not allowed to resume ivory trade TANZANIA BURUNDI elephants. at CoP18. Having traded more than 20 species with 55 international trading 6. The illegal ivory trade has been recognised Environmental Investigation Agency (UK) partners in over 900 exports between ANGOLA MALAWI as a serious transboundary organised 62-63 Upper Street ZAMBIA 2016-18, Zimbabwe would stand to lose crime. Between 2011 and 2017, there were London, N1 0NY much more than just its reputation if it open/express support for reopening trade 107 large-scale seizures (500kg or more), T: +44 (0) 207 3547960 ZIMBABWE MOZAMBIQUE abandoned CITES.
Mackenna ©EIA/Rachel indicative of organised criminal activity. closed/express support for closure of DIM NAMIBIA E: [email protected] BOTSWANA http://www.eia-international.org/ unknown EIA reports and data on the illegal ivory trade are available at: https://eia-international.org/wildlife/ EIA recommends that Parties reject the proposals by Zambia, protecting-elephants/ ©Darryl Balfour SOUTH AFRICA Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe that seek to undermine the All images © EIA unless otherwise stated. protection of elephants. ELEPHANT POACHING AND IVORY TRAFFICKING IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
The most recent African elephants status report, published by IUCN in 2016, highlights that populations have faced a continental decline, mainly due to poaching for ivory. The report also concluded that despite some growth in elephant populations, poaching is on the rise in Southern Africa. The region’s elephant population has declined by 2016 50 2017 84 approximately ten per cent since 2007 and continues to decrease. SOUTH Several sites in Southern Africa under the CITES Monitoring the 2018 71 LUANGWA Illegal Killing of Elephants Programme (MIKE) have been flagged due 2,519kg LILONGWE to an increase in elephant poaching since 2016, including in Chobe National Park (Botswana), Kruger National Park (South Africa), South Luangwa National Park (Zambia) and Niassa Game Reserve 2007 1,619 1,599kg 2007 22,251 PEMBA (Mozambique). In Botswana, the latest census conducted in 2018 indicates a surge in poaching, particularly of bull elephants with 2016 3,396 2016 21,967 MALAWI larger tusks. The report on the Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS) to CoP18 found that ‘’considerable quantities of ivory have ANGOLA entered international trade from South Africa’’ and that Zimbabwe, LUSAKA 2016 7 2017 3 Namibia and Botswana are all prominent sources of illegal ivory. The ZAMBIA CHEWORE MOZAMBIQUE SAFARI DISTRICT report also flags the increasing emergence of Zimbabwe and South 2018 2 Africa as hubs for processing ivory destined for Asia.
Examples of elephant population declines1 2007 14,847 HARARE 2016 10,884 Botswana (Chobe NP) Zambia (Sioma Ngwezi) * CHOBE 3,927kg 60,000 800 NATIONAL PARK 50,000 700 2016 32 2017 15 BEIRA 450 ZIMBABWE 40,000 1,791kg 2018 10 30,000 300
20,000 150 2016 2017 2007 WINDHOEK 0 22 93,122 number of elephants number of elephants 10,000 50 996kg 2018 38 2016 82,630 NAMIBIA 2015 2013 2005 2004 2010 2014 2018
@EIA BOTSWANA year year TO ASIA
Zambia (Lower Zambezi) Zimbabwe (Sebungwe)
GABORONE KRUGER 3500 NATIONAL 2007 PARK 3000 15,807 2007 154,958 PRETORIA 2500 12000 2016 22,754 2016 131,626 JOHANNESBURG MAPUTO 2000 9000 1500 6000 INDIAN number of elephants 1000 3000 OCEAN number of elephants 2016 46 2017 67 2015 2013 2001 2014 2005 2003 2006 2018 71 @EIA year year 5,676kg KEY Methodology for map (right) ATLANTIC The representation of transboundary elephant populations is not National elephant Ivory transport 1 to scale and illustrates the shared nature of Africa’s elephant OCEAN DURBAN population route by road populations. The map only represents four MIKE sites so does SOUTH AFRICA not take into account the vast majority of elephant ranges and Ivory processing Ivory transport therefore represents a minimum number of elephants killed. hub2 route by air 1 IUCN African Elephant Status Report 2007; The trade routes and transport hubs presented here are derived IUCN African Elephant Status Report 2016 Stockpile-theft Maritime ivory from EIA investigations as well as open-source information and have 2 CoP18 Doc. 69.3.: Report on the Elephant Trade occurrence3 transport route been included to illustrate the international nature of the illegal ivory Information System (ETIS) trade. They do not present an exhaustive list of trade routes. 3 EIA-UK, Illegal Ivory Trade Map 2007 17,847 The ivory seizure data presented here is derived from EIA’s 4 Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) Database Number of poached elephants reported 4 database of publicly reported seizures and is therefore not an 5 EIA-UK, Ivory Trade Database 2016 at MIKE site exhaustive dataset, representing a fraction of the actual level of 18,841 6 Lindsay, K et al. (2017). The shared nature of Africa’s trade between 2010 to June 2019. The map shows the combined elephants. Biological Conservation Vol. 215. Total weight of ivory seized in country and total (kg) weight of ivory seized both in the relevant country and * Bwabwata National Park outside of, but linked to country between outside of but linked to that country. CAPE TOWN 2010 and June 20195 There have been thefts from government-held ivory stockpiles in Map not to scale Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique, which fuel illegal Transboundary elephant populations6 ivory trade.