Vital online resources available to Eastern Africa wildlife law enforcement agencies
Eastern Africa-TWIX launches a new website to connect wildlife law enforcement from Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda following the success of a mailing list launched in September 2020.
Eastern Africa-TWIX will draw from the experience of operational and successful TWIX systems.
Arusha, Tanzania – On 20th May 2021, close to 30 representatives from wildlife law enforcement and relevant agencies from across East Africa attended the virtual launch of the Eastern Africa-TWIX website. The website provides valuable resource materials such as species identification tools and training materials, such as CITES guidelines, CITES compliance mechanism, crucial for law enforcement.
Eastern Africa-TWIX (Eastern Africa Trade in Wildlife Information eXchange) facilitates the circulation of information and promotes cooperation between law enforcement agencies responsible for combating illegal wildlife trade and implementing the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
The Eastern Africa-TWIX website is one of the best approaches in wildlife crime prevention.
Jarvis Galole, from Investigation Unit at Kenya Wildlife Service The launch of the Eastern Africa-TWIX website follows the introduction of the mailing list in August 2020. To date, close to 200 officials in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya have been connected to the Eastern Africa-TWIX mailing list and are entitled to access the website.
“This website means that now TWIX users in East Africa benefit from both the mailing list and the website strengthening regional collaboration in the cracking down on wildlife trafficking,” said Allan Mashalla, the East Africa Regional TWIX Coordinator based in Tanzania.
The website was developed with funding from two USAID-funded projects: Wildlife TRAPS and, Conserving Natural Capital and Enhancing Collaborative Management of Transboundary Resources in East Africa (CONNECT).
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, is an international agreement between governments that aims to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Find out more here.
About Wildlife TRAPS
The Wildlife TRAPS Project, implemented by TRAFFIC and IUCN with funding support from USAID, is helping to forge cross-sectoral partnerships with government and experts in inter-governmental organisations, NGOs, academia, and the private sector to identify risk mitigation strategies to prevent future zoonotic spillover potential associated with trade in wild animals.
As well as social and behavioural change interventions, the Wildlife TRAPS project is supporting policy and regulatory reform efforts, including strengthening supply chain management systems. The identification of critical control points within wildlife trade supply chains will help target illicit and other high-risk wildlife trade practices that may facilitate the transmission of zoonotic diseases.
