Authority Revising Policy to Prevent illegal Wildlife Smugglers, Enhance Protection

Addis Ababa October 26/2020 (ENA) Ethiopia has been revising its wildlife conservation policy in a bid to protect its wildlife wealth from illegal smugglers and other impediments that jeopardize the wellbeing of wild species in the country, Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA) said. 

Ethiopia’s current legal enforcement and punishment of criminals regarding wildlife has gaps compared to other countries in the world, Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA) Director General, Kumera Wakjira told journalists today.  

According to him, though killing of wildlife without permission in Ethiopia is  illegal, smuggling of wildlife and their products has been one of the key challenges posed on the wellbeing of  its wildlife and their habitats.

This is mainly due to the weak penalties levied on a criminal act which is only five years of imprisonment or a fine of 30,000 Birr for person who kills an elephant,  he said.

The penalty doesn’t properly consider the damages caused by the crime to the national economy and the natural resources as the gains of the offenders exceed the magnitude the punishment which hinders the efforts to prevent illegal killings, according to the director general.

The revised draft will therefore strengthen the legal framework to enable the nation prevent crimes against wildlife including killing and smuggling, he stated.

In addition, Kumera  pointed out that the revised policy will also give emphasis to mechanisms vital for the development of eco-tourism and enhance the economic benefits of communities around the parks as it has been also the other predicament to protect the wellbeing of the sector.

Since the policy has been in work for the last 15 years, he added and said it requires revision to make it compatible with the existing political, economic and social dynamics evolving in the country, the continent and throughout the world.

According to him, the revised draft has improved the law enforcement and punishment for illegal wildlife smugglers and the authority has focused on use of technology to monitor the crimes.

Ethiopia has a total of 27 national parks across the country administered by the federal government regional governments, and he stressed the need the involvement of non-government actors such as private sector, community organizations and other stakeholders  to enhance the protection of wildlife in the country.

Public Private Partnership mechanisms are also considered as an effective instruments to ensure the wellbeing and conservation of the sector Kumera pointed out.  

He further said these issues have been addressed in the draft policy paper which is currently under discussion with relevant stakeholders.  

The Authority has also planned to see national parks with international standard and quality in the coming ten years by effectively implementing a 10-year national prospective plan that aims at better exploiting resources from the conservation areas.