TAG: GS 3: ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
THE CONTEXT: During the ongoing KAZA 2024 Heads of State Summit in Livingstone, Zambia, delegates have reiterated calls for member states to withdraw from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
EXPLANATION:
- This demand stems from repeated refusals by CITES to allow these countries to sell their substantial ivory stockpiles, which they argue hinders their ability to monetize their elephant resources for conservation and economic benefits.
Background
- The Kavango-Zambezi Trans-Frontier Conservation Area (KAZA-TFCA)
- KAZA-TFCA is a vast 520,000-square-kilometer wildlife sanctuary that spans five southern African countries: Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
- This region, along with South Africa, is home to more than two-thirds of Africa’s elephant population, totaling approximately 450,000.
- Botswana alone has an elephant population of 132,000, followed by Zimbabwe with 100,000.
- Historical Context of Disputes with CITES
- The conflict with CITES is not new.
- At the 19th meeting of the Conference of Parties of CITES in Panama in 2022, the KAZA states, along with five other southern African countries, pushed for the opening of trade in ivory and other elephant products.
- This proposal was rejected, leading to a formal declaration of a dispute with CITES by these countries.
- They argued that the refusal to allow ivory trade exacerbates habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict and impedes their conservation funding efforts.
Key Issues at the Summit
- Delegates at the Livingstone summit have once again called for KAZA member states to consider withdrawing from CITES.
- They argue that the blanket ban on ivory trade is unreasonable and denies them the opportunity to benefit financially from their large elephant populations.
- The Director of Scientific Services in Namibia’s Ministry of Environment Forestry, and Tourism, emphasized the need for countries to have the right to sell wildlife products like hides, especially given the mortality of elephants.
- Without the ability to trade, they face challenges in managing their elephant populations and funding conservation efforts.
- Zimbabwe holds a stockpile of 166 tons of ivory, valued at approximately $700 million.
- The inability to sell this ivory significantly impacts their conservation financing.
- KAZA member states could afford to exit CITES without significant repercussions.
- Current opposition within CITES is driven by emotions and politics rather than scientific evidence.
- It is suggested that a political solution, rather than continued technical arguments, is necessary to address this issue.
Broader Implications and Strategic Considerations
- The calls for withdrawal are not limited to KAZA member states but extend to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) as a whole.
- Hamunyela emphasized the need for a unified stance across SADC countries to address what they perceive as CITES’ failure to adopt progressive, equitable, and science-based conservation strategies.
- In response to increasing bans on hunting trophy imports by Western countries, Zimbabwe is actively seeking alternative markets in the East.
- The European Parliament’s call for a total ban on trophy imports, followed by bans in Belgium and the UK, has prompted Zimbabwe to explore new opportunities for its trophy hunting exports.
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES):
- The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is a global agreement among governments to regulate or ban international trade in species under threat.
- In the mid-20th century, governments were beginning to recognize that trade in some wild animals and plants had a devastating impact on those species.
- These species were being driven toward extinction through unsustainable use for food, fuel, medicine, and other purposes.
- And while individual governments could control what happened within their borders, they did not have a way to address the impacts of international trade in these species.
- In 1973, 21 countries addressed this issue by signing the CITES agreement.
- CITES remains one of the cornerstones of international conservation.
- There are 184-member Parties and trade is regulated in more than 38,000 species.
- Representatives of CITES nations meet every two to three years at a Conference of the Parties (or COP) to review progress and adjust the lists of protected species.
- The protected species are grouped into three categories with different levels of protection:
- Appendix I –
- Includes the world’s most endangered plants and animals, such as tigers and gorillas.
- International commercial trade in these species, or even parts of them, is completely banned, except in rare cases such as scientific research.
- Appendix II –
- Contains species like corals that are not yet threatened with extinction, but which could become threatened if unlimited trade were allowed.
- Also included are “look-alike” species that closely resemble those already on the list for conservation reasons.
- Plants and animals in this category can be traded internationally, but there are strict rules.
- Appendix III –
- Species whose trade is only regulated within a specific country can be placed on Appendix III if that country requires cooperation from other nations to help prevent exploitation.
- CITES also brings together law enforcement officers from wildlife authorities, national parks, customs, and police agencies to collaborate on efforts to combat wildlife crime targeted at animals such as elephants and rhinos.
- Appendix I –
