FCTA warns on trade in endangered wildlife, products

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has vowed to clamp down on illegal sale of products derived from wildlife within the territory.

Acting secretary, Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat,  Ibe Chukwuemeka Prospect, stated this during a meeting with  stakeholders in wildlife management at the secretariat. 

He said Nigeria is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) of wild fauna and flora, which aims at ensuring that international trade in wild animals does not threaten their 

survival and that Nigerians are obligated to abide by the agreement.

He expressed worry at the level of confidence perpetrators freely sold these derivatives of wildlife on the streets of Abuja and restated the readiness of the administration to put an end to it. 

The meeting, he said, was convened to bring relevant stakeholders from the Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, Ministry of Environment, National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), area councils and the National Park Service to share ideas on addressing the issue. 

Speaking at the occasion, the Director Monitoring and Enforcement of Abuja Environment Protection Board, Dr. Hassan Abubakar said the populace as well as the perpetrators need to be sensitised and be prosecuted  if they refuse to desist from illegal sales. 

One of the resource persons at the meeting, Mrs Omovoh Blessing Odafe from The Federal Ministry of Environment said under the CITES which is a global instrument used for regulating international 

Trade to which Nigeria became a signatory to the party’s convention in 1975, the framework of CITES is to be respected by all parties to the convention. 

She further stated that under the convention in schedule 1, there are some animals or plants that cannot be touched as they face outright extinction due to the peculiarities of the specie.

Odafe emphasised that government is working tirelessly with other enforcement agencies like the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), the Nigeria Customs Service, The Nigeria Immigration Service, INTERPOL and the Judiciary to make sure that nature is preserved.

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