Representatives of law enforcement agencies, judicial institutions, environmental ministries and the private sector are meeting to discuss new threats and identify possible solutions to dismantle organized criminal groups and stop wildlife crime.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), INTERPOL and The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales’ United for Wildlife programme jointly organized the week, which will feature a series of events, including the 8th meeting of the Wildlife Inter-Regional Enforcement (WIRE) Forum organized by UNODC.
Practitioners from 34 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America will focus on operational activities targeting transnational criminal syndicates, with the aim of intensifying cooperation against the trafficking of wild fauna and flora.
Ghada Waly, UNODC Executive Director, said “through the combined efforts of UNODC, INTERPOL and United for Wildlife, we are consolidating our resources, expertise and ideas to generate greater impact in the fight against wildlife crime.”
Waly said Wildlife Week and the WIRE Forum provide a platform to strengthen operational exchanges and information sharing in the fight against wildlife crime.
Participants are expected to explore cooperation opportunities and strengthen the criminal justice response beyond the confiscation of contraband and the arrest of low-level offenders to go after the organized criminal networks responsible for this transnational crime.
In the same week, the Royal Foundation’s United for Wildlife programme hosts its Global Summit 2024 in Cape Town, which will bring global leaders from conservation, law enforcement and government together with United for Wildlife’s Taskforces across finance, law, transport, ecommerce, and other sectors.
On 6 November, the 35th INTERPOL Wildlife Crime Working Group will begin.
The meeting will facilitate networks and partnerships to enhance global law enforcement action and share the results of the INTERPOL Global Wildlife Crime Threat Assessment, which will guide future activities and projects.
Jürgen Stock, INTERPOL Secretary General, said “cooperation is the cornerstone in the fight against wildlife crime, especially at this critical moment when poaching and illegal trade threaten countless species. Sharing expertise and information is crucial to strengthen the global net which can catch traffickers and protect endangered wildlife.”
Speaking the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Dr Dion George, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment in South Africa, thanked the week’s organizers for choosing South Africa to host the 8th Wildlife Inter-Regional Enforcement (WIRE) meeting. George said South Africa is endowed with immense natural wealth but faces significant complexities that arise from environmental crimes. “These illicit activities threaten to undermine our proud conservation legacy and our rich biodiversity is vulnerable to transnational criminal syndicates. Our wildlife, plantlife and marinelife is their target. Our lions, rhinoceros, pangolin, succulent plants, abalone, and our fish stock, to name only a few, is significantly at risk and we must respond. These crimes not only endanger their direct targets, they also have a devastating impact on our country’s moral fabric, where the poaching culture consumes communities, on our existing and potential eco-tourism industry, and on our good standing in the international community as custodians of irreplaceable natural heritage.”
Picture: Supplied