Today, March 3, the World Customs Organization (WCO) joins in celebrating World Wildlife Day, proclaimed by the United Nations (UN). It commemorates the anniversary of the adoption, in 1973, of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which plays a prominent role in the protection of species from international trade.
The theme for World Wildlife Day 2021 is “Forests and livelihoods: sustaining people, protecting the planet.” Se highlights the role of forests and their ecosystems in sustaining human life on the planet. The UN estimates that between 200 and 350 million people worldwide live in or near forests and people depend on their resources for subsistence, food, shelter, energy and medicine. Protecting this heritage is therefore essential.
In this regard, the Secretary General of the WCO, Dr. Kunio Mikuriya, stated through a release that "Ensuring the sustainability of natural resources through legal trade is a duty that the international customs community is committed to fulfilling.” And he explained: “Despite restrictive measures in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, Customs around the world rose to the challenge and maintained their efforts to disrupt illegal trade in wildlife and forest products, to continue protecting both communities and the environment.”
In order to join forces to combat environmental crimes, WCO partnered with the CITES Secretariat, INTERPOL, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the World Bank to form the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC). One example of this was the Operation Thunder 2020, of global application, carried out in the months of September and October. It was co-led by the WCO and INTERPOL with the support of the CITES Secretariat, to prevent illegal wildlife trade. This Operation was a great success for 103 participating countries, with More than 2.000 seizures and nearly 700 suspects identified.
The WCO, through the WCO INAMA project, also provides comprehensive training to its members to combat illegal wildlife trade. It also supports beneficiary customs administrations in Africa, Asia and South America to strengthen CITES enforcement capacities.
The WCO, together with the customs community and all its partners, is taking advantage of this date to express its rejection of illegal wildlife trade and thus preserve the planet and its communities.
Aduana News is the first Argentine customs newspaper to launch its digital version. With 20 years of experience, its publications and initiatives aim to provide the most relevant knowledge on customs issues in order to contribute to safe trade in the region.
