Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and FloraCITES and elephants issues

African elephant meeting / runion sur llphant dAfrique Gigiri, Kenya 09-12 March 2009

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African elephants Cop14 CoP15CoP14 package Authorizes a one-off sale of raw ivory (government stocks registered by 31 January 2007) from Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe, in addition to quantities agreed at CoP12, subject to verification of stocks and trading partnersNo further ivory trade proposals shall be submitted by these four range States to the CoP for nine years after the one-off sale; and the SC may decide to stop trade in case of non-compliance or proven detrimental impacts on other elephant populationsThe SC to propose a decision-making mechanism for ivory trade by CoP16 in 2013The African range Sates to adopt and African elephant action plan and the Secretariat to establish an accompanying African elephant fund administered by the SC

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Elephants issues and CITESAction plan for the control of trade in African elephant ivory [Decision 13.28 (Rev. CoP14)]Includes: controls on unregulated domestic ivory markets; forensic ivory identification work; focus on Cameroon, DRC, Nigeria, Thailand; others identified through ETISSecretariat to provide technical assistance and continue working with law enforcement organizations (e.g. ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network, ICPO-Interpol, World Customs Organization, Lusaka Agreement Task Force)Strict time-bound implementation, verified by SecretariatReporting by Secretariat to Standing CommitteePossibility to impose trade sanctions on Parties that do not implement Action Plan or where significant quantities of ivory illegally sold

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Elephants issues and CITESAfrican elephant Action plan (Decision 14.75)Outline Strategic framework for an African elephant action plan agreed in Mombasa, June 2008 Further version Strategic framework for an African elephant action plan circulated in December 2008From a Strategic framework to an African elephant action plan discussed in Gigiri, March 2009Range States to report to Standing Committee on progress with the implementation of the African elephant Action Plan

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Elephants issues and CITESThe African elephant Fund and African elephant meetings (Decision 14.79)Secretariat to establish an African Elephant Fund and a steering committee to govern the FundResults of a feasibility study presented to range States in Mombasa, 2008Some donor commitment pending the adoption of an African elephant Action Plan [with time limits on commitments]Establishment of the Fund discussed with range States and donors at Gigiri, March 2009Secretariat, through MIKE funding, to convene an African elephant meeting before 31 July 2008 and later as necessary

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Elephants issues and CITESCall for funding (Decision 14.76)Parties, trading countries, the ivory carving industry, intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations and other donors asked to contribute to the African Elephant Fund for the implementation of the African elephant action plan and the programme for Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) to ensure their establishment and maintenance

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Elephants issues and CITESReview by Standing Committee of information on the conservation status of and trade in elephants (Decision 14.78)Standing Committee to conduct ongoing comprehensive reviews of the status of the elephant, trade in its specimens and the impact of the legal tradeSC57 agreed that reviews should not duplicate substantial existing Standing Committee assignments on elephants (e.g. supervise ivory action plan, ivory sales, MIKE, ETIS, ivory trade mechanisms, )Secretariat, IUCN, TRAFFIC and UNEP-WCMC to compile relevant information by SC58 (July 2009) pending external funding

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Elephants issues and CITESProcess for future ivory trade (Decision 14.77)SC, assisted by the Secretariat, proposes mechanism to decide on future ivory trade processes by CoP16 (2013) SC agreed at SC57 for Secretariat to coordinate independent study pending external funding covering:ivory trade mechanisms operating under CITESstrengths and weaknesses of international trade regimes for other high-value commoditiesbasic principles that could guide future trade in ivoryoperation of an effective, objective and independent decision-making mechanism conditions for ivory trade, considering: ecological and economic sustainability; impact on illegal killing of elephants; impact of the one-off sale; enforcement; etc.

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Ivory auctionsOctober/November 2008: auction in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe of 102 tonnes of ivory to Chinese and Japanese accredited traders for 15,400,000 USD

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Ivory auctions what nextLoxodonta africana populations of BW, NA, SA and ZW (Appendix II): can trade in hunting trophies, live animals, hides, hair, leather goods, Ekipas (NA) and ivory carvings for non commercial purposes (ZW)no further proposals to allow trade in elephant ivory from populations already on Appendix II until 2017Impact monitored through Elephant Ivory Trade System (ETIS) and Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE)

ETIS trends

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Elephants issues and CITESPreparations for 58th meeting of Standing Committee (SC58), Geneva, 6-10 July 20097 May 2009: Deadline for submission of documents to SC58SC58 agenda:MIKE-ETIS SubgroupReview of information on the conservation status of and trade in elephants (Secretariat, D. 14.78)Report on African elephant Action plan (range States, D. 14.75)Progress report African elephant fund (Secretariat, D. 14.79)Progress in developing a decision-making mechanism for a process of trade in ivory before CoP16 in 2013 (Secretariat, D. 14.77)Report on single ivory sale BW, NA, SA, ZW (Secretariat)

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Elephants issues and CITESPreparations for 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (CoP15), Doha, Qatar 2010New deadline for submission to the CITES Secretariat of:draft resolutions and other documents normal proposals to amend Appendix I or II [other than those in Resolution Conf. 8.21 or Resolution Conf. 11.16 (Rev. CoP14)] Deadline 150 days before start (was 19 August 2009)

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African elephant export quotas 2009

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MIKE CITES Geneva and GigiriThank you for your attention

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