How leaders can save African wildlife

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” If this is true, then African countries stand to be judged harshly.

Indeed from Kenya , Namibia, South Africa , Zambia, Uganda, Botswana , Mozambique, Tanzania, Malawi to Zimbabwe and a host of other cities and countries in Africa, the cry has been, and is, the same – save our wildlife; shut down the market for illegal wildlife products.

And while that resounding cry is renting the African air, there are international criminal cartels that regroup every day, every month and every year to continue with their illegal wildlife trade escapades, hence decimating our wildlife species at an alarming rate.

Wildlife conservation experts warn that if we, Africans, don’t wake up from our deep slumber and smell the coffee, our wildlife will vanish from our sight in the next 15 – 20 years.

DROPPED TO UNPRECEDENTED LEVELS
An estimated 470,000 wild elephants remain in Africa, according to a count by the NGO, ‘Elephants Without Borders’, down from several millions, a century ago.

The Director of a US-based Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Mr Alastair Nelson reported on May 26, 2015 that in Africa, up to 30,000 elephants are estimated to be killed illegally each year to fuel the ivory trade.

Other than elephants, other iconic animals targeted by these notorious cartels are rhinos, cheetahs and lions, among others.

Hunting in Africa, with or without a license is at its highest level in decades, now exceeding the wild species’ reproductive rate and causing significant declines in the population.

Unless the illegal and inhumane slaughter of these species is halted, we will likely see these magnificent animals disappear from the wild in the next several decades.

OMINOUS FUTURE

This paints a very ominous future for our wildlife, and something has to be done urgently. African leaders have to, with one accord, take it upon themselves, first to do their part, and then lobby the world’s largest markets for animal products poached from Africa – China and The United States, to shut down their markets.

Lamine Sebogo, African elephant programme Manager at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) International, counseled us thus, "Wildlife crime is a serious global security issue and participation by all countries is required to stop it.

In many places improvements are needed in regulation, enforcement, transparency, resourcing and transnational collaboration."

It is unbelievable that some African countries like Mozambique are beginning to open doors for sport hunting, as evidenced by the World Bank’s grant of $700,000 to support the same as a way of conservation – killing an animal, to conserve another one, an oxymoron!

NEGATIVE NEWS

Coming home, Kenya has been in the international news recently for negative wildlife news.

This last month, on May 19, 2015 to be exact, the world woke up to news that Singapore authorities had netted one of the biggest illegal shipment of 1,783 pieces of raw ivory tusk, four pieces of Rhino and 22 teeth from Cheetahs and Leopards stashed among bags of tea leaves in two 20-foot containers, while transiting through the city-state to Vietnam.

Four days prior to this mega wildlife scandal, on May 15, 2015, a Vietnamese national, Vuanh Tuan, 47 was arrested at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) Nairobi, with Rhino horns and Lion teeth all valued at Sh12 million while on transit from Maputo in Mozambique to Hanoi.

GLIMMER OF HOPE

However, all hope is not lost. On June 27, 2015, thousands of amateur and professional athletes from more than 20 countries converged on the rolling plains of Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, also known as Lewa Downs to participate in Safaricom Lewa Marathon as a way of making their contribution to save the remaining rhinos, elephants, zebras, lions, giraffes among other species.

At a Nairobi hotel, on the evening of June 30, 2015, Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o was picked by Wild Aid to lead the global war against elephant poaching. Kenyan Sports Cabinet Secretary, Hassan Wario was there.

As she met with conservationists, the business community and the press Ms Nyong’o dissuaded people from poaching. “I have learnt that an elephant kept alive is worth a million dollars for the economy.

But a poacher will only earn a few thousands for a few people,” she said.

The other happening of tremendous regional and global magnitude was what a Pan-African organisation based in Kenya that promotes humane treatment of all animals - Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW), has been doing.

In a first of its kind, ANAW has partnered with volunteers from the Chinese community working and residing in Kenya under the umbrella of China House, to nurture and inspire animal welfare ambassadors amongst them.

On June 1, 2015, ANAW’s Executive Director, Mr Josphat Ngonyo led a team comprised of ANAW staff and the Chinese volunteers, about 17 of them to Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Organization’s (KARLO) upper and lower ranches in Nakuru county for a de-snaring expedition.

This exercise requires the participants to comb thickets and bushes looking for snares set up by poachers, lifting them and rescuing any trapped animals.

According to Mr Ngonyo, the objective was to have the Chinese experience a first-hand encounter of the trauma the animals go through, as poachers kill them and later have their products shipped out of the country for trade.

On that day alone, 20 snares were lifted and 3 zebras rescued. Unfortunately one had to be put down as the wound caused by the wire snare was beyond repair.

The volunteers watched in horror, their emotions ran high and their hearts ached as they were later to express in their Facebook page dubbed ‘China House’.

BREAKTHROUGH

It is in the public domain that China and Hong Kong have very strong cultural roots, and that doesn’t mean they cannot change.

China has abandoned many cultural beliefs and attitudes, for example towards slavery, foot binding and the rights of women, and just as the Japanese attitudes towards ivory were changed in the 1980s as the country became more integrated into the international community, the same can happen in China.

It is all about changing attitudes; and that’s exactly what ANAW has been doing in their partnership with the Chinese volunteers – to help change their attitudes towards wildlife products trade.

There appears to be a speck of light at the very far end of the proverbial tunnel because China, on May this year at an event in Beijing, made an historic pronouncement that it was going to start phasing out its legal, domestic manufacture and sale of ivory products as one of the ways of combating elephant poaching in Africa.

As foreign diplomats witnessed 662kg of confiscated ivory being symbolically destroyed, Zhao Shucong, head of China’s State Forestry Administration, said: “We will strictly control ivory processing and trade until the commercial processing and sale of ivory and its products are eventually halted.” Conservation groups said the announcement was ‘the single greatest measure’ in the fight to save the last African elephants from poaching.

This is a major breakthrough in the anti-poaching campaign, especially, this being the first time China has committed to phase out its legal, domestic ivory industry.

So what can Kenya do? President Uhuru Kenyatta has pivotal role to act in this play. Kenya, as at today, is in cordial relations with China and therefore, he may have to engage his counterpart president Xi Jinping, both politically and diplomatically on this grave wildlife matter.

He may also, if he so desires, instruct the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Amb. Amina Mohamed to engage her counterpart in China, Mr Wang Yi or the Chinese ambassador to Kenya, Dr Liu Xianfa and pile pressure on China so that they hasten the phasing out process.

There’s something else the president can do. The US President Barack Obama will be in Kenya in a few days to attend the highly publicised Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) 2015.

The United States is the second-largest market globally for illegal wildlife products after China, and it still allows trade in ivory acquired before a worldwide ban in 1989. Trophy hunters are also allowed to import ivory into the United States for non-commercial use.

On Monday, June 29, 2015 According to Whitehouse website, President Obama signed two bills into law on trade policy thus: Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) and the Trade Preferences Extension (TPE) Act, which includes Trade Adjustment Assistance. Under law one, rule number two, there’s put a lock in the strongest environment protection in history that will combat illegal wildlife trafficking.

China wants US to lead the way on phasing out wildlife trade. President Uhuru can add this item to his joint itinerary with President Obama, and implore him as the leader of the free world to lead by example so as to demonstrate to the world that US will not be an active player in the devastation and eventual extinction of such a majestic and intelligent species in Africa.

As President Uhuru plays his role, the other African presidents ought to follow thither and open channels of diplomatic engagement with the Chinese and other countries to end this wild menace.

The writer works as a Communications Officer with the African Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW).