Protected species across the globe including tigers,
Asian elephants and chimpanzees have been given a boost today (22
May) as the government announces £3.4 million for new projects
from the Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) Challenge
Fund.
From today, the government is also inviting new projects
to apply for the next round of
funding.
The Illegal Wildlife Trade is a criminal industry worth
more than £17 billion each year threatening wildlife, bringing
species to the brink of extinction and causing despair for
communities. The IWT Challenge
Fundsupports projects around the world that tackle the
illegal wildlife trade by strengthening law enforcement, reducing
demand for illegally traded wildlife products, and empowering
people to shift away from trading illegal wildlife to more
sustainable livelihoods.
The latest round of the Challenge Fund will fund
important wildlife conservation projects across the globe,
including five in Asia, two in Africa and South America
respectively and one in Europe.
Projects that will receive funding include:
- combatting jaguar losses in Bolivia by expanding intelligence
networks to combat poaching
- protecting pangolins, elephants and chimpanzees along the
Nigeria-Cameroon transboundary Green Corridor through improved
cooperation between enforcement agencies
- empowering communities in Indonesia to shift away from
trading illegal wildlife to more sustainable alternatives
- strengthening law enforcement in protected areas in Guatemala
to reduce the poaching of valuable hardwood species and
fauna
- supporting more sustainable harvest methods of orchids by
rural communities in Nepal to reduce their illegal trade
To date, the Challenge Fund has supported 85
projects to a value of more than £26 million.
International Environment Minister
said:
“I am delighted to announce this latest boost
to our IWT Challenge Fund on the International Day of Biological
Diversity. Our fund is driving change to protect illegally
trafficked wildlife across the globe.
“We are committed to taking global leadership to
protect the world’s most endangered species. The illegal wildlife
trade brings misery to local communities and holds back
development in some of the world’s poorest countries, and today
marks another milestone in helping to end this vile trade and
protect these amazing species for future generations.”
Conservation charity Fauna & Flora
International has received funding for two new projects including
helping communities in Southern Myanmar to combat the threat of
poaching endangered species including tigers, Asian elephants and
pangolins.
Joanna Elliott, Senior Director for
Conservation Partnerships, Fauna & Flora International,
said:
“Fauna & Flora International is delighted
that two of our wildlife trade projects have been selected by
Defra for this round of IWT Challenge Fund support. The UK
government funding for our work to combat illegal wildlife trade
is helping FFI to deliver real benefits for endangered species
and for local people across multiple
countries.
“The Covid-19 crisis highlights the direct
links between nature conservation and human well-being, and FFI
is committed to ending illegal wildlife trade, and to addressing
the drivers of biodiversity loss and zoonotic disease emergence,
notably high-risk wildlife trade, deforestation and unsustainable
land-use changes.”
This latest move follows the £220m
biodiversity fund announced by the Prime Minister in
September dedicated to addressing biodiversity loss, tackling the
illegal wildlife trade and alleviating poverty through
sustainable development. The UK is investing more than £66
million between 2014 and 2024 to take action to counter the
illegal wildlife trade.
