Conservationists set to launch program to combat wildlife trafficking

International conservation groups announced Saturday they will launch a major program in Kenya next week aimed at combating illicit trafficking in wildlife.

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) together with the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), Freeland Foundation and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) said they will host law enforcement and wildlife officials from eight African countries to launch a new program called Africa's Regional Response to Endangered Species Trafficking (ARREST).

"The overall aim of the program is to strengthen cross-border wildlife enforcement capacity, leading to more efficient and effective detection at critical border posts and hotspots," AWF said a statement released in Nairobi.

Wildlife conservationists have decried the entry of organized crime syndicates into the illegal wildlife trade, most notably of rhino horn and elephant ivory, which they said, has created a crisis situation in many African countries.

The demand for rhino horn in parts of Asia is driven by absurd beliefs, eagerly peddled by charlatans hoping to get very rich, that the powdered horn is a cure for everything from hangovers to cancer.

The killing of elephants, rhino and other wildlife species is having a huge impact on tourism sectors of countries such as Kenya and the authorities have stepped up surveillance on traffickers of ivory.

The ARREST program is aimed at increasing traffickers' risk of detection, arrest and conviction by identifying and disrupting well-established wildlife trafficking networks on the continent.

The statement said throughout five days of a week-long DETECT manager's training course, wildlife and law enforcement officials will receive in-depth and analytical training that will ensure that as frontline warriors in the battle against illegal wildlife traffickers, they are adequately armed with the standard operating procedures and tools in how to detect, arrest and arraign suspected traffickers.

It said participants will get "an opportunity to see and hear first-hand the processes that wildlife and law enforcement officials have to go through in the detection and seizure of illegal wildlife products."

The meeting will bring together conservationists as well as international police organization (Interpol) and other key partners on current efforts being undertaken to halt the rising trend in wildlife trafficking.

AWF, along with IFAW and Freeland Foundation, has been working to strengthen the law enforcement response to combat wildlife crime at the regional level by improving cooperation among African countries' law enforcement authorities.

The work is being carried out under a continent-wide ARREST program and implemented by the partners.

ARREST is designed to be a holistic continent-wide program that increases capacity and communication channels at the national, regional and international level for combating wildlife trafficking and poaching.

ARREST Africa, similar to the existing ARREST Asia program, will offer proven expertise in assisting African governments to establish and operationalize national and regional wildlife crime task forces, enhancing capacity of enforcement officers to protect habitats and investigate cross-border crime.

With support from donors, several regions of Africa are looking to establish intergovernmental and multiagency Wildlife Enforcement Networks (WENs) that work closely with agencies such as Interpol and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime to combat trans-boundary wildlife crime. Endit