Nigeria, a major global trafficking hub for wildlife

, Benue) said on Monday, April 15, that Nigeria has been known as a major global trafficking hub for wildlife in recent years.

He said further that wildlife crime also fosters corruption, facilitates insecurity and presents opportunities for the spread of zoonotic diseases such as COVID-19. The proposed law, he said aimed to “address threats to biodiversity in Nigeria and across Africa by providing a consistent and strong legal framework to put an end to wildlife trafficking. In doing this, it embodies recommendations made following a consultative and collaborative analysis of relevant Nigerian laws for addressing wildlife trafficking.”

“Although not strictly a requirement of the lawmaking process, this policy dialogue is necessary to harmonize stakeholders’ position on the bill and clear the way for its expeditious approval and adoption as law.

He said: “The weaknesses of the current legal framework are exemplified in the minimal sentences handed down to wildlife crime perpetrators who have been prosecuted and convicted in the past year and a half, thanks in part to the assiduousness of the Nigeria Customs Service.“The low penalties in the current legal framework are such that they can be discouraging to the dedicated intelligence-led investigations and prosecutions that have made these convictions possible.

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