EXPERTS SET PRIORITY ACTIONS TO COMBAT WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING IN KENYA

Ground-breaking workshop addresses key conservation challenges

Date Published: 14 Apr, 2015

Nairobi, April 14, 2015 – U.S. Ambassador to Kenya, Robert F. Godec, joined Dr. Richard Lesiyampe the Principal Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Water and Natural Resources and Mr.  William Kiprono, acting Director General of Kenya Wildlife Service, at a ground-breaking workshop supported by the United States Government through the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Wildlife Trafficking Response, Assessment and Priority Setting (Wildlife TRAPS) Project.  The workshop was convened by TRAFFIC, an international wildlife trade monitoring network, in collaboration with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).  It is the first technical workshop to identify national priority actions to combat the illegal killing and trafficking of wildlife in Kenya.

“The government has remained steadfast in supporting conservation through a deterrent wildlife law, inter-agency security collaboration mechanism, more efficient and better coordination at ports of entry and exit, as well as budgetary support for ranger recruitment and routine operations,” said Kiprono. 

In the past decade, a surge in demand for African natural resources has become apparent in Asia. With this growing demand, major challenges have emerged; notably the rapid escalation in poaching and trade of endangered species.  The illegal killing of terrestrial mega-fauna such as elephants and rhinos, and marine species is now causing a conservation crisis

DOWNLOAD: April 13th 2015 - Press Release Wildlife TRAPS Workshop