BOTSWANA: Poachers Kill Close To 100 Elephants For Ivory

Gaborone, Botswana: Ninety elephant carcasses have been discovered in Botswana with their tusks hacked off, a charity said on Tuesday, in what is believed to be one of Africa's worst mass poaching sprees.

Most of the animals killed were large bulls carrying heavy tusks, Elephants Without Borders said.

The grim discovery was made over several weeks during an aerial survey by Elephants Without Borders and Botswana's Department of Wildlife and National Parks.

We started flying the survey on July 10, and we have counted 90 elephant carcasses since the survey commenced, Mike Chase, the charity director, said.

Each day we are counting dead elephants, he added.

The animals were shot with heavy calibre rifles at watering spots near a popular wildlife sanctuary in the Okavango Delta.

The scale of elephant poaching is by far the largest I have seen or read about in Africa to date, Chase said.

The poaching coincided with the disarming earlier this year of Botswana's rangers, according to Chase.

The number of African elephants has fallen by around 111,000 to 415,000 in the past decade, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The killing continues at a dizzying pace of about 30,000 elephants a year to meet demand for ivory in Asia, where tusks sell for around $1,000 (Dh3,673) a kilo.

Chase said elephants in Zambia and Angola, north of Botswana, have been poached to the verge of local extinction, and poachers have now turned to Botswana.

Botswana Tourism Minister Tshekedi Khama confirmed that dozens of elephants had been poached, but gave no further details.

The government was not immediately available to comment on rangers being apparently disarmed earlier this year.

Botswana previously had a zero-tolerance approach to poaching, with a shoot-to-kill policy against poachers.

Poachers have also targeted rhino, said Chase, after six white rhino carcasses were found in recent months.


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CONSERVATION: Illegal Trade In Indian Star Tortoises Has Skyrocketed.

They’re pretty. They’re harmless. And they won’t give you salmonella, unlike the once popular pet, the red-eared slider turtle. Indian star tortoises are now the stars of the pet trade.

They used to be a species conservationists didn’t worry about. Occasionally one would show up at a Hindu temple as an object of worship, they still do—the god Vishnu is believed to have been reincarnated as a tortoise, but there just wasn’t much of a market for them.

Now, reptile experts and the broader conservation community are worried. The illegal trade in Indian star tortoises has skyrocketed.

Back in 2004, one estimate figured about 10,000 to 20,000 were being taken illegally from the wild over the tortoises’ entire range, which encompasses India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

But in just a single rural village center in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, middlemen collected at least 55,000 Indian star tortoises poached from nearby smaller settlements in 2014, according to a recent study in the journal Nature Conservation by the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit.

Not only that, but the booming trade in Indian star tortoises is also likely contributing to the decline in even rarer species—the radiated tortoise and the ploughshare tortoise, of which there are fewer than 200 adults left in the wild.

What we found was pretty horrific, said Aniruddha Mookerjee, of the London-Based nonprofit World Animal Protection and one of the study’s authors. The numbers are adding up to something quite staggering.

It’s a warning about other species we think are stable, said Peter Paul van Dijk, the director of the tortoise and freshwater turtle program at Conservation International and one of the world’s leading experts on the animals.

A change in circumstances allowed something that was never a trade to develop into a robust one, van Dijk said. The possible ripple effects in this case the easier trafficking of even rarer animals too makes the warning all the more dire.

Aside from the huge numbers, there’s another problem: The animals being poached from the wild are primarily babies and juveniles.

They’re easier to smuggle because they’re smaller and lighter. That’s good in that it means there are still adults around to replenish the population, but it’s also worrisome: Once the parents die, that could lead to population collapse.

Intensive collection for export trade means that any hatchling or juvenile will be found and removed well before it can grow up and join the adult reproducing population, van Dijk said. The existing adults will eventually die of old age, leaving the area without any tortoises at all.

The Indian star tortoise isn’t now considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the international body that sets conservation statuses for species around the world.

But it’s on its way to to being listed as vulnerable, a step below endangered, said van Dijk, who is also part of the IUCN’s turtle and tortoise specialist group that is evaluating the Indian star tortoise’s conservation status.

The tortoise is protected both in India, where it’s illegal to own or trade them commercially, and internationally.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which regulates the international wildlife trade, requires a permit to export them from their home country to ensure that their trade doesn’t harm population levels.

Despite these legal protections, which experts agree are adequate on paper, the illegal trade has skyrocketed.

It began with the Asian turtle crisis. As China opened itself up to economic trade after the Tiananmen Square massacre, Chinese demand for luxury items in particular, softshell turtle meat skyrocketed.

Supply increased with demand, and by 2009, up to three-quarters of Asia’s 90 species of freshwater turtles and tortoises were threatened, according to an IUCN estimate.

The Indian star tortoise was not part of this crisis.

But with trade routes well established from the food trade, it was only a matter of time before these routes began supplying the exotic pet trade as well—and only a matter of time before traffickers began trading Indian star tortoises to meet that demand.

We’ve been noticing this going on for at least a decade now, said Mookerjee of the growing Indian star tortoise trade. But we weren’t really sure what the size of the business was.

Still, the collection 55,000 Indian star tortoises that the researchers and their team observed in a single community was unexpected. We were just shocked at the pure volume of animals that was being shifted, said Neil D’Cruze, another of the study’s authors.

The traits that helped tortoises outlast dinosaurs their shells and slow metabolisms are now being exploited by traffickers.

Part of the reason for the increase in trade may be that Indian star tortoises are more resilient than other types of exotic pets. The traits that helped tortoises outlast dinosaurs their shells and slow metabolisms are now being exploited by traffickers.

That’s not to say that these animals don’t suffer, taped up and stuffed into suitcases, D’Cruze said. Their shells crack, they get stressed, and diseases spread quickly since they’re packed into close quarters.

Many don’t survive the smuggling process. However, criminal actors are simply building this cruelty and mortality rates into their business model and are still able to make money.

Indian star tortoises are collected from the wild by rural villagers, who then sell them to middlemen.

Then the tortoises get passed to highly organized, professional traffickers who get them out of the country and into Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, and other wildlife trade hubs. That’s where they become legal.

Thailand, for example, has laws protecting native turtles and tortoises, but it has no laws against trade in nonnative species, such as the Indian star tortoise that were taken illegally in another country.

So if a trafficker can smuggle the illegally taken tortoises out of India and through Thai customs, they’re safe. And legal.

Along the way, the shipments of tortoises sometimes acquire falsified paperwork indicating that they were captive bred. That makes it easier to trade to Americans and Europeans, who are also big customers of the species, where enforcement of wildlife laws is stricter.

No one ever expected these loopholes to be exploited so blatantly, van Dijk said.

The trade in Indian star tortoises now provides cover for trade in species that are even more at risk: Madagascar’s radiated tortoise and ploughshare tortoise, both critically endangered.

The radiated tortoise has a starry pattern on its shell, very similar to the Indian star tortoise, and the ploughshare has a protective neck plate below its chin shaped like the blade of a plow.

In a shipment of baby Indian star tortoises out of Thailand, which is legal even if the tortoises themselves were poached from India, who’s going to notice one or two almost identical radiated tortoises tucked among them?

Or a tan ploughshare, of which there are fewer than 200 mature adults left in the wild? It’s not easy for an overworked, undertrained customs agent to pick the critically endangered smuggled individual from the mass of legal ones.

In a shipment of baby Indian star tortoises, who’s going to notice one or two almost identical, but critically endangered, radiated tortoises tucked among them?

The identification of these reptiles can be extremely difficult for enforcement authorities, who effectively must also be able to identify any species at any time, be they fish or fowl, D’Cruze said.

Without knowing where a species came from, even trained scientists who have dedicated themselves to understanding the different characteristics of various species can have a hard time identifying animals, he said.

This does present the perfect opportunity for criminal actors to pass protected species off as unprotected species.

In 2013, Thai customs agents caught a pair of smugglers at the airport with 300 Indian star tortoises, 21 radiated tortoises, and 54, ploughsharesan estimated 10-plus percent of the entire remaining population of ploughshares.

Mixing in similar-looking animals of different, rarer species in legal trade shipments, van Dijk said, is a trick as old as there have been animal trade regulations.


Tourism Observer

WEST AFRICA: Gorillas And Chimpanzees Under Threat

Gorillas and chimpanzees may be twice as numerous in West Africa as previously thought, but the apes are still endangered, declining fast and in dire need of protection, an international study found Wednesday.

Prior estimates were based on nest counts taken from isolated areas across the great apes’ habitat range, said the report in the journal Science Advances.

The new count uses mathematical modelling to project likely ape numbers in areas where their nests haven’t been directly surveyed by people.

The estimates are based on other factors known to influence ape numbers, such as proximity to roads and people, and recent outbreaks of Ebola virus which can be deadly.

Spanning 59 sites in five countries surveyed over 11 years, it is the most comprehensive and accurate dataset ever compiled on these apes, said one of the lead authors, Fiona Maisels, conservation scientist for the Wildlife Conservation Society.

The results show that western lowland gorillas in western equatorial Africa number nearly 362,000, up from prior estimates of 150,000-250,000 individuals.

And chimpanzees in the area are expected to number almost 129,000, up from earlier counts of 70,000 to 117,000.

But despite the larger numbers, researchers still found a speedy drop in the population in recent years, which means the apes are still in danger of going extinct.

Some 19.4 percent of the gorilla population was lost between 2005 and 2013, said the report.

At this rate, the gorilla population is expected to plunge 80 percent in just three generations.

Maisels said researchers are pleased to have a more accurate number, but cautioned that it does not change the gorillas’ status as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Nor does it change the characterization of chimpanzees as endangered.

What we are worried about is the gorillas are going down to a tune of 2.7 percent per year, Maisels said.

The other kind of worrying thing is that the majority of gorillas and chimps do not live in protected areas, she said.

As many as 80 percent of the great apes live outside protected areas, according to the study.

About 60 percent of all known gorillas and 43 percent of chimpanzees live in the Democratic Republic of Congo, while Gabon is home to 27 percent of the gorilla population and 34 percent of chimpanzees.

High densities of both apes also live in southern Cameroon.

Even though killing gorillas is illegal worldwide, hunting remains the top threat to survival, followed by disease and habitat loss.

More anti-poaching efforts are needed, both inside and outside protected areas, said the report.

Better land planning could help preserve the apes’ high-quality habitat.

Given that gorillas are more numerous and chimpanzees are more ecologically resilient than expected, and that large areas of ecologically functional great ape habitat remain, we are hopeful that robust conservation policies.

Well-managed parks, and responsible industrial practices can stop their declines and provide for secure and thriving populations, the study concluded.


Tourism Observer

MALAWI: African Parks Reintroduces Lions In Liwonde National Park

Four years after the last lion was seen in Liwonde, African Parks have reintroduced the first of several wild lions back into the National Park.

In partnership with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW), and with support from the Dutch Government and the Lion Recovery Fund, two mature males were released into enclosed bomas in the park after being safely translocated from Majete Wildlife Reserve, where lions were reintroduced in 2012.

They will remain in bomas for several weeks to allow close monitoring of their wellbeing, adjustment, and bonding with two lionesses which will be translocated from South Africa in March, before they are all released in to the wider park.

While the translocation hails the return of this iconic predator to Liwonde, it is also symbolic of Majete’s extraordinary restoration.

Majete’s pride was entirely poached out decades ago, but since their reintroduction, the population has grown to the extent that it can assist in repopulating Liwonde, 200 km north-east of Majete.

African Parks will further supplement the populations in both parks over the coming months, with the translocation of up to 12 additional lions from South Africa.

This is an important milestone for lion conservation in Malawi, where populations of the vulnerable species are being revitalised as part of an effort to restore the country’s parks, rehabilitate wildlife populations and encourage tourism for the benefit of local communities.

The reintroduction of lions is fundamentally enriching for Liwonde said African Parks’ Liwonde Park Manager, Craig Reid.

It restores a key species that is critical to the healthy functioning of the natural system, contributes to the establishment of an important local predator population, and will significantly benefit tourism as a mechanism for socio-economic growth.

The arrival of these big cats lays the foundation for a secure national population of lions, helping to further distinguish Malawi as an emerging premier wildlife destination.

With the UN World Wildlife Day on Saturday 3rd March highlighting the plight of big cats across the world, Malawi’s lion translocation is an extraordinary example of the conservation measures being taken to secure a future for Africa's most iconic cat.

Just over a century ago, more than 200,000 wild lions were living throughout Africa, but in just two decades, Africa’s lion population has decreased by 42%.

Today, wild lions are extinct in 26 African countries, and there are only about 20,000 lions left in wilderness areas, prompting the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to classify lions as Vulnerable on the Red List of Threatened Species.

Threatened by habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict and loss of prey, their numbers are steadily decreasing, and unless urgent actions are taken to ensure their survival, it is likely that lions will become an endangered species.

African Parks assumed management of Liwonde in partnership with the DNPW in 2015, and since then has completely overhauled law enforcement to secure the park.

They have constructed a robust perimeter fence enclosing the entire park, established rigorous ranger patrols, and worked extensively with local communities, making significant progress in revitalising habitat and wildlife populations through the reduction of poaching and mitigation of human-wildlife conflict.

The lions have each been fitted with tracking collars to facilitate intensive daily monitoring.

For a long time Malawi’s stunning beaches, beautiful and varied landscapes and fascinating and friendly cultural experiences have been some of the best that Africa has to offer.

With the wildlife transformations currently underway courtesy of African Parks, Malawi’s safari experiences are now starting to match its other attractions as it emerges as one of the most complete destinations in Africa.



Tourism Observer

MALAYSIA: Thai And Malaysian Turtle Smugglers Arrested

Two Thais and a Malaysian man have been arrested for trying to smuggle eight rare sulcata tortoises, also known as African spurred tortoises (Centrochelys sulcata), through Malaysia's border with Thailand.

The trio of smugglers, who were between 24 and 28, tried to cross the border with the reptiles hidden in their car via Perlis.

The three men are facing a prison term of up to two years and a fine of up to RM50,000, or both, for violating anti-trafficking laws.

Most likely, the African tortoises were destined for Malaysia's booming exotic pet trade where the animals are prized by many turtle enthusiasts.

Numerous exotic turtles are smuggled into the country and out of it with depressing regularity.

Often trafficked turtles don't survive their ordeals, suffocating or starving to death in boxes where they're bound up in duct tape to stop them from moving around.

There's also a thriving market in them within Malaysia, where turtles and other exotic animals are often traded online.

Small and juvenile turtles are especially prized,just as all other trades, legal or illegal, wildlife trafficking, too, responds to demand.

We can all reduce or even eliminate that demand by refusing to buy or sell endangered animals and by reporting those people who continue to traffic in them.

Turtle species are seriously threatened,nowhere more so than in Asia with 17 of the 25 most critically endangered tortoises and freshwater turtles on the IUCN Red List found in the region, James Tallant, a senior program officer for the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, recently pointed out.

All illegal trade in exotic turtles and other vulnerable species of wildlife,be they reptiles, mammals, fish or birds must stop.


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210 More Birds Species At Risk Of Extinction

New research on endangered species shows that many more bird species than previously thought face extinction.

The findings, published early November in the journal Advanced Science, show that close to 210 forest bird species face an immediate risk of extinction. The study calls for a reclassification of the birds from previous ratings by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

IUCN had classified them as non-threatened in its Red List.

The new study examined 586 bird species, placing the 210 in a higher-threat category. It also found that 189 species should be classified as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered in the IUCN Red List, that are currently deemed as non-threatened.

The 25-year-old IUCN Red List is the world’s most widely used database of endangered species. It uses various criteria to assess the extinction risk of a species. Species are then classified as threatened, vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered.

“The Red List employs rigorously objective criteria, is transparent and democratic in soliciting comments on species decisions,” study co-author Stuart Pimm and professor of conservation ecology at the US-based Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment, Doris Duke said in a statement. “That said, its methods are seriously outdated.”

Part of the criteria the scientists are using to calculate the threat level to a given species is the rate at which its habitat is depleting.

The November 2016 study refined the original ranges for species using geospatial data on the range preferences of the birds, and then added data on the forest cover remaining for the birds, in order to calculate the amount of suitable habitat remaining within their distributions. It was conducted in six of the world’s most biodiverse places — the Atlantic Forest of Brazil, Central America and Western Andes of Colombia, Madagascar, Sumatra and South East Asia.

“Habitat loss and degradation are the biggest threat to most of the species in the world’s most biodiverse places,” says the study report.

The grey-winged cotinga (Tijuca condita), for example, is a bird found in Brazil that is currently listed as vulnerable in the Red List. But its refined range size, according to the study, is smaller than 100 square kilometres, which should shift its threat category to critically endangered. Other species are Marvelous Spatuletatail, Cerulean Paradise Fly-Catcher, Madagascar Fish Eagle and Spix Macaw.

Although the study did not focus on Africa, human activities similar to those in the study areas are common on the continent. They include clearing of wetlands for agriculture and other land uses, deforestation and destruction of habitats.

In 2013, BirdLife International, IUCN’s Red List Authority for birds, added white-winged fluff tail and yellow-breasted bunting to the list of critically endangered species from Africa. Other listed species are the Crested Crane and Shoe Bill, as well as the African Grey Parot.

In May, IUCN and Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) announced a five-year partnership to provide funding to broaden the scope of the Red List of Threatened Species.

It is expected that this will significantly increase knowledge on the extinction risk of more than 28,000 species, including many that are key food sources for a significant portion of the global population.

Elephants In Africa.

It took two years, 81 aircraft and 286 crew flying 494 000 kilometres across 18 countries and the support of 90 scientists to count Africa’s savanna elephants. The final tally was an extremely worrying 352 271.

The team was led by Mike Chase of Elephants Without Borders and supported by a $7-million grant from Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and his sister, Jody, and was the largest African wildlife survey ever undertaken.

The results of the Great Elephant Census (GEC) are a wake-up call. Elephant numbers in all but a few African states are declining, some alarmingly. In the countries surveyed, savanna elephants are dropping by eight per cent a year, mainly due to poaching. The population in the countries surveyed now stands at an estimated 352 271.

Between 2007 and 2014, in 15 countries where reliable previous counts were available for comparison, populations were found to have declined by 144 000 or 30%. In Tanzania the population has plummeted by a shocking 60% in five years, in Mozambique by 53% over the same period.

The GEC forms the crucial backbone of an elephant status report to be issued by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Hawaii on Friday. [Subs Sept 2] Two counts will probably be added: Namibia with 22 711 and South Africa with an extra 9 000 (only Kruger Park and Tuli enclave were included in the GEC survey).

Forest elephants counts are unreliable varying from 50 000 and 190 000 following a 2011 census. Since then poaching has escalated dramatically. If taken at 50 000, that would put Africa’s elephant population at around 434 000.

According to the GEC report to be issued in the PeerJ Journal tomorrow [Subs: Sept 1], Africa is estimated to have been home to around 20 million elephants before European colonization. As recently as the 1970s this stood at around one million. A wave of poaching in the 1970s and 1980s decimated populations in many areas and a renewed outbreak beginning around 2005 led to the deaths of a further 30 000 elephants a year.

When the GEC census began, elephant counts in many areas were out of date or mere guesses. Its goals were to discover the number and distribution of savanna elephants over most of their range and provide a continental baseline for future surveys.

The count excluded forest elephants which require labour-intensive ground tallies. Their numbers there are not encouraging. A forest survey was done in 2013 and found that between 2002 and that year the forest elephant population declined by 62%, losing 30% of its geographical range.

Important findings by the survey team were that:
– Across the entire research area, elephant deaths are exceeding the birthrate.
Poaching in Niassa (Mozambique) and Selous (Tanzania) reduced the elephant population by 75% in 10 years.

– Populations in the West Zambezi ecosystem in Zambia plummeted from 900 to just 48 elephants between 2004 and 2015.

– Elephants are likely to become locally extinct in Mali, Chad and Cameroon if current trends continue.

– Protected areas are failing to shield elephants from poaching. And 16% of savana elephants (50 000) are not in protected areas.

– Botswana, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe are the good news, with relatively large elephant populations which are increasing or declining only slightly.

– Of the total African savana population counted by the GEC, Botswana has 37%, Zimbabwe 23%, Tanzania 12% and South Africa 8%.

– According to the PeerJ report, the census recorded 201 poacher’s camps and 3.39 million head of cattle in the survey area. ‘This suggests that conflict between humans and elephants is widespread. In elephant range areas, human populations are projected to double by 2050.’

According to the report, it is ‘hoped that this survey will encourage people across Africa and around the world to protect and conserve elephant populations.

‘The future of savanna elephants depends on the resolve of governments, conservation organizations and people to apply the GEC’s findings by fighting poaching, conserving elephant habitats and mitigating human-elephant conflict. With populations plunging in many areas, urgent action is needed to reverse these ongoing declines.’

KENYA: African Wildlife Foundation Picks Ugandan Kaddu Sebunya As President

Kaddu Kiwe Sebunya

The African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) (www.AWF.org) announced today it has elected Ugandan native Kaddu Kiwe Sebunya to serve as its new President. Sebunya will focus on advancing a clear policy agenda for wildlife as part of Africa’s future, ensuring the continent’s blueprint for development and growth includes space and protections for Africa’s natural heritage.

“I am excited to be stepping into the role of president at a time when Africa’s economies are surging, and when important decisions are being made as to how Africa should manage its natural resources responsibly and with accountability,” said Sebunya. “The continent is undergoing a profound change, and we must help to guide this change so it benefits Africa’s people and wildlife.”

Sebunya began his career serving as a project manager with WaterAid and as a relief program officer with Oxfam UK. Beginning with his post as the Associate Director for the United States Peace Corps in Uganda, Sebunya’s career began to focus more on conservation. He later served as a country program coordinator with the World Conservation Union—now the International Union for Conservation of Nature, or IUCN—and as a senior policy and planning advisor for Conservation International.

In 2006, Sebunya moved to Washington, DC and became AWF’s Director of Programs. He developed and implemented a legislative program to engage U.S. lawmakers on issues affecting conservation and development in Africa. In 2013, he became Chief of Party for the USAID/Uganda Biodiversity Program before transitioning to AWF’s president.

Sebunya received his Bachelor’s degree in Social and Political Science from Uganda’s Makerere University and a Masters of Science degree in Sustainable Resource Management and Policy from London’s Imperial College. He also holds a Master of Arts degree in Law, Policy and Diplomacy from Tufts University’s The Fletcher School

East Africa, SADC, Determine To Fight Illegal Timber Trade

The recent signing of the Zanzibar Declaration on Illegal Logging by forest protection agencies in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Mozambique and Madagascar is a hopeful sign of the commitment by eastern and southern African countries to stem the alarming growth in illegal timber trade which is costing the countries billions of dollars.

The deal which was struck at a global gathering on forests in South Africa in recent weeks, aims to improve communication between customs authorities and collaboration among forest officials from the east and southeast African nations.

“The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) welcomes the Zanzibar Declaration on Illegal Trade in Timber and Other Forest Products, the first such agreement of its kind in the region,” said Geofrey Mwanjela, head of the WWF Coastal East Africa Initiative terrestrial programme.

“The declaration comes at a crucial time. Illegal trade in timber is expanding at an alarming rate and this new commitment by governments will greatly amplify efforts to reduce such trade at the regional level.”

The declaration was accepted and announced at the XIV World Forestry Congress, one of the largest gatherings of world forestry leaders.

The event was facilitated by WWF, TRAFFIC, and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

“The Zanzibar Declaration signals a firm commitment by the countries concerned to curtail the illegal and unsustainable timber trade that is benefitting criminals and depleting the natural resources of the region,” said Julie Thomson, TRAFFIC’s East Africa programme co-ordinator.

TRAFFIC is a joint programme by the WWF and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) to monitor wildlife trade and ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation.

Forest experts had for several years bemoaned about inadequate collaboration among national forest agencies and customs agencies across the region.

Lack of collaboration has led to unfettered growth in illegal logging that has seen violent armed groups and other mafia –type business thriving and profiteering from this trade.

In 2014, the United Nations Environment Programme reported that in east, central and West Africa, criminal groups are thought to make more money from selling illegal wood products – up to $9 billion annually – than through street-level drug-dealing.

Forest experts say there is growing intra-regional and inter-regional illegal trade of timber and other forest products flowing across Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar, Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi, as well as further towards the Western and Central Africa termed Africa’s ‘Green Heart.’

Kenya loses roughly US$10 million per year from illegal cross-border trade between Tanzania and Kenya, according to a 2012 study by the Tanzania Natural Resource Forum and East African Wild Life Society.

Tanzania loses around US$8,33 million annually from such trade, according to a similar government report.

“If properly managed, forests provide jobs for workers and homes for wildlife. They also act as a filter pulling planet-warming carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, so protecting them is crucial for the broader environment,” said Juma Mgoo head of Tanzania’s Forest Service.

“Across the region, the illegal timber trade is flourishing at an alarming pace. Criminal groups are benefiting from the environmental destruction and forests continue to dwindle at unprecedented rates in our region.

“If we continue at the rate which we are going there will be nothing left for our children and their children to enjoy.”

In a presentation at the congress, WWF – Zimbabwe country director, Dr Enos Shumba said it was important for African countries to explore and promote the African perspective for building resilience of different forest ecosystems to withstand economic, environmental and social shocks through forest management.

He highlighted the opportunities for enhancing Miombo woodland ecosystem resilience through participatory forest management referring to environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of forests for the benefit of present and future generations.

He also stressed the need to enhance the participation of local communities and stakeholders and provision of adequate economic incentives to save forests.

“The existence of enabling governance and institutional frameworks and their enforcement at various levels, as well as functional cross sector coordination and respect for integrated land use planning and its implementation is critical to build resilience and save our forests,” Dr Shumba said.

WWF’s Living Forests Report projects potential forest loss in the East Africa region of up to 12 million hectare between 2010 and 2030.

WWF’s remote sensing analysis has indicated that forest losses from 2000 to 2012 were concentrated in Mozambique (2, 2 million hectares), Tanzania (2 million hectares) and Zambia (1.3 million hectares).

Globally, between 50 – 90 per cent of wood is harvested or traded illegally, according to United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and it’s estimated to cost US$30 – 100 billion annually.

The Zanzibar Declaration was hammered after protracted debate and negotiations among key stakeholders in the forest sector, national forest agencies as well as regional and international partners and civil society organizations, including WWF.

Environment Africa Zimbabwe country director Barney Mawire said that although illegal timber poaching within the Sadc region is not as prevalent as in central and west Africa, the region needs to strategise and work together to fight illegal timber trade.

“The Zanzibar Declaration is quite noble and this should be tied in to trade bodies such as the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA),” he said.

“Timber poaching is growing and need to join hands and fight together. This will go a long way towards fighting illegal timber trade.”

Mawire said it was important to have forest experts at the ports of entry to monitor the illegal movement and trade in timber products.

“Forest experts understand the issues better and are better placed in dealing with timber poaching which is increasingly becoming sophisticated,” he said. “We need them at our borders and we need to work with our neighbours to develop new methods to curb illegal timber trade.”

Zimbabwe is losing approximately 330 000 hectares of natural forests and woodlands per year due to the over-reliance on biomass to meet the country’s energy needs.

More than 70 percent of the population depends on biomass for energy needs and this has over the decades depleted the country’s forest cover.

Forest experts say Zimbabwe now has around 15,6 million hectares remaining.

They say logging syndicates work with corrupt police and officials to exploit legislative loopholes that allow them to pass off illicitly obtained fuelwood as legitimate.

Zimbabwe passed a law in 2012 restricting the use, trade and movement of firewood, but with fines that rarely exceed $20 the legislation is proving a poor deterrent, experts said.

Power cuts are making it difficult to keep deforestation under control and forestry experts say it is becoming more difficult to enforce legislation as the situation becomes more about survival.

Deforestation has an adverse impact on the environment and experts warn that the depletion of the country’s forests could worsen water availability.

“Models show deforestation could result in a decline in precipitation of more than 5 percent across Zimbabwe by 2050,” Terrence Mushore, a lecturer at the Bindura University of Science Education was quoted saying in the media recently.

Despite the deforestation woes, Mawire said Zimbabwe had done well in saving its forests.

“Zimbabwe has done well in terms of preserving its forests and fighting illegal timber trade,” he said.

Timber poaching for trade is not as serious as in east, central or west Africa but as a country we need to continuously improve our strategies for curbing illegal timber trade.”

Poor implementation and weak enforcement still remains a major barrier in the fight against illegal trade in timber.

In the absence of political will, effective implementation and enforcement, the damage illegal loggers have done will continue unabated, costing Africa billions.

The future of children, will be under threat from unsustainable timber logging activities.

And, without enforcement, the Zanzibar Declaration, although an important step in the fight against timber poaching, will simply add time to the clock, but without doing anything to change Africa’s illegal timber trade endgame.

Fight Against Poaching Turning From Guns To Smart Phones

Poaching remains a serious existential threat for many species, in spite of global efforts to combat it. But an innovative app could help thwart poachers in remote areas and beyond.

The digital age might be a good thing for man, but the same doesn't ring true for beast. Mobile technology has enabled wildlife traffickers to decimate animal stock around the world by placing a simple phone call. And that is a massive problem.

According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Southeast Asia is ground zero for setting the pace toward an extinction crisis. The organization lists 150 land and water species native to the region as critically endangered. Some face being eaten out of existence; yet others are poised to be eradicated as a result of wildlife trafficking.

In Central Africa, studies estimate that systematic poaching has resulted in the loss of 100,000 forest elephants - a 64 percent decline over the past 10 years.

But rather than engage poachers in firefights bullet for bullet - which is dangerous, not to mention being a drain on resources - an international consortium of conservation organizations has embarked on a new high-tech strategy to combat such losses.

Hunting the illegal hunters
New York-based nonprofit organization Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), working with seven conservation groups, has developed software aimed at helping rangers in remote locations to anticipate poaching activity rather than merely reacting to it.

The SMART (Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool) application, as it is known, provides users with information on illegal hunting, telling them what happened and where. Designed to work in tandem with GPS-enabled devices, such as heavy-duty cell phones, it also allows conservation managers to map and follow a ranger's activities.

"You can collect data on where rangers have been, while on patrol, but also make observations on what they've seen," SMART program coordinator Alexa Montefiore said. "What's key about SMART is that it also operates in offline environments. It streamlines collecting data to make it more efficient."

What results is that patrol data is no longer stored at isolated field stations, rather transferred to and stored on secure servers at headquarters. After rangers enter information into a handheld device, this is then fed into data visualization software. From there, patterns emerge that Montefiore says enable site managers to direct rangers and resources to critical areas.

This ability to gather field intelligence on animals and well-armed poachers could be a game-changer - especially for rangers and non-governmental organizations facing multiple threats in the Global South.

Conservation groups have already implemented SMART in 130 protected areas across 29 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, and the technology is also slated to be adopted elsewhere.

Colombia, for example, intends to implement the free and open software throughout its vast network of 58 parks, Montefiore told DW.

Exploiting the mobile phone rise
Although not a cure-all for illegal activity, an observant ranger equipped with a handheld device capitalizes on two technological trends. Firstly, the system enables users to upload and share information over digital networks.

Secondly, it's cheaper. "Rugged" mobile devices, which range in price from around 120 euros to 500 euros, are far cheaper than the old equipment, which was bulky and expensive. These days, smart phones function much like laptops did 10 years ago.

Moreover, mobile phone use in Asia and Africa has skyrocketed. According to a Gallup Poll from 2013, nearly two-thirds of all households in sub-Saharan Africa own at least one cell phone.

Smart phones also play a major role in modern life in Southeast Asia. In Cambodia, for example, 58 percent of the urban population and 47 percent of the rural population own a mobile phone.

"In many of the places we're working, people already embrace technology," says Antony Lynam, program manager for the WCS Asia programs. "They're already using smart phones to text and communicate - SMART is another piece of technology that they can get into," Lynam explains. SMART is going to be rolled out at five or six pilot sites, he added.

App plus people power
Other research institutions and NGOs are testing similar approaches to conservation and the battle against poaching. For example, one crowd-funded conservation project hopes to put smart phones in the hands of the JulHoansi people, hunter- gatherers who serve as the guardians in the Nyae Nyae Conservancy in Namibia.

The site Crowdfunder describes how the JulHoansi intend to use smart phones to monitor the illegal encroachment of cattle onto their ancestral homelands.

Yet another app called Sapelli is a mapping tool, created to help indigenous people living in the Congo Basin to monitor and chart the illegal activities of poachers operating in their area.

But Lynam says the technology is only as effective as those using it. "Poachers can compromise rangers quickly, especially in regions with luxury timber and high value species to poach," he says. "Pretty soon, traders get to these rangers and start to corrupt them."

Lynam, who is a lifelong wildlife conservationist, says traffickers pay rangers large sums of money to turn a blind eye.

Technological risks
But there are also risks to embracing such technology. If a wildlife trafficker were to bribe or hack their way into a SMART database, that could have devastating consequences for conservation personnel and the species they try to protect.

But the battle is on. And with well-organized traffickers having what Lynam describes as the "best communications gear, vehicles and networks of people" to help shift illegal goods through international checkpoints, anti-poaching efforts need good weapons, too.

Lynman welcomes SMART and its ability to reveal the true state of protected areas to stakeholders - and to provide conservationists with the information required to take action.