United Nations vote against illegal wildlife trading

MBOMBELA – The United Nations (UN) general assembly urged member states to take urgent steps to prevent, combat and eradicate the illegal trade in wildlife, on both the supply and demand sides, during a sitting in New York recently.
The assembly asked members to recognise that wild animals and plants are irreplaceable parts of the natural systems.

Through the new resolution, the assembly expressed serious concern over the steady rise in the level of rhino poaching and the alarmingly high levels of killing of elephants in Africa, which threaten those species with local and, in some cases, global extinction.

In the official address the assembly president, Mr Sam Kutesa, said that, “Illegal wildlife trafficking not only threatens species and ecosystems, it affects the livelihoods of local communities and diminishes tourist attractions. It compromises efforts towards poverty eradication and the achievement of sustainable development.”

With the new resolution unanimously adopted, the 193-member body encouraged governments to adopt effective measures to prevent and counter the serious problem of crimes such as illicit trafficking in wildlife and wildlife products, including flora and fauna, and poaching.