The Federal Government has partnered with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the European Union ( EU) on tactical measures and strategic approaches to effectively tackling wildlife and forest offences.
Country Representative of UNODC, Oliver Stolpe, who spoke at the inaugural ceremony of the “International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC): Analytical Toolkit Nigeria”, condemned the high level of environmental devaluation, saying Nigeria had one of the highest rates of deforestation worldwide, saying that from 2002 to 2020, the country lost 141kha of humid primary forest equivalent to 14 percent of its total tree cover.
“Immoderate, unsustainable, and most illegal extraction activities puts the livelihood of local communities and species, who live in these woods. Wildlife is not only endangered by the continuous shrinking of their habitat but also by professional poachers and local hunters. The criminal business of wildlife and forest products in Nigeria has created a threat to biodiversity across the entire region”, Stolpe said.
He commended the adoption of the first national strategy to combat crime, the recent establishment of the wildlife enforcement task force, and efforts to review the legislative framework and boost the criminal justice system to be strategic steps taken.
Stolpe also revealed that such efforts started to bear fruits about the ability of Nigerian law enforcement to seize illegally traded wildlife and forest products.
“These efforts have not yet reversed the trend to put an end to the role of Nigeria, as a regional hub for the illegal trade in wildlife and forest products.
“The legal framework continues to evidence gaps as concerns the penalties foreseen by law.Recent cases suggest that investigators, prosecutors, and judges appear to require further capacities and resources to mount an effective and credible justice response when organized crime is involved,” he added.
