CLAMPING DOWN ON WILDLIFE CRIME

With support from the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund, we are supporting government partners to ensure that wildlife criminals are brought to justice. The ‘Review of Wildlife Crime Case Outcomes in Malawi 2017-2023’ analyses seven years of data on court outcomes. The report focuses on factors influencing illegal wildlife trade patterns and provides an evidence-based assessment to help stakeholders prioritise and improve wildlife crime prevention strategies in Malawi.

During this period, over 600 arrests were made, resulting in more than 500 convictions and the seizure of over two tonnes of ivory. Encouragingly, the data also show that ivory trafficking has been deterred, with the number of ivory court cases falling year-on-year over the past seven years. The lowest number of cases was in 2023, representing a fall of 67% since the peak in 2017. At the same time, numbers of iconic species, such as elephants, rhinos and lions, are rising in Malawi – proof that a strong criminal justice response can help bring wildlife back from the brink.

This is positive news given the staggering scale of global illegal wildlife trafficking. The latest UNODC World Wildlife Crime Report (2024) reports 13 million seizures of around 4,000 plant and animal species between 2015 and 2021. Ecosystems, economies, and societies are all affected by this illicit, multi-billion-dollar industry.

Malawi stands out as a beacon of hope in this context. After being singled out as a transit hub for ivory trafficking in 2016, Malawi now has some of the world’s toughest laws on wildlife crime. Illegal export of wildlife products through Malawi’s international airports has become almost impossible, due to improved law enforcement including regular searches at airports by the Wildlife Detection Dog Unit. There has been no major international IWT seizure linked to Malawi since March 2017.

Over the past decade, the Government has developed a pioneering approach to legislation and enforcement which has resulted in wide-scale disruption of illegal wildlife trade and the conviction of some of Southern Africa’s most notorious wildlife criminals.

Malawi’s amended National Parks & Wildlife Act passed in 2017, providing greater protections for wildlife and stronger penalties for wildlife criminals, including custodial sentences of up to 30 years. Prior to this, the maximum sentence for ivory trafficking/trade was one-year imprisonment while the most common sentence was a fine of just $40. In comparison, in 2023, an average conviction rate of 93% was achieved for elephant and rhino offences, with 90% of those cases resulting in a custodial sentence. The average custodial sentence is now 5.5 years and the longest sentence to date is 18 years.

However, despite this progress, the battle is not yet won. Pangolin trafficking, although declining, is still at concerning levels in Malawi, and there is some evidence of a recent uptick in elephant poaching adjacent to national borders. And, of course, disrupting and deterring wildlife crime is just one part of the equation. When live animals are seized by law enforcement officials, it is imperative that they are given expert veterinary care and rehabilitation to give them the best chance of survival. This is particularly true for threatened and endangered species like pangolins, where every individual really does count.

That’s why, in addition to our Conservation Justice Programme, we also run a wildlife sanctuary, Lilongwe Wildlife Centre, and a mobile Wildlife Emergency Response Unit, which responds to animals in distress across the country – whether it’s is an elephant caught in a snare or a cheetah involved in human-wildlife conflict.

Each year we rescue around 100-150 animals at Lilongwe Wildlife Centre, many of which have been affected by the illegal wildlife trade, the illicit pet trade, and other forms of wildlife crime and abuse. Our specialist pangolin protection programme – which provides veterinary care, rehabilitation, and post-release monitoring for rescued pangolins – continues to be in high demand as a result of the ongoing illicit trade in pangolin scales and meat. These cases can be particularly challenging, given that pangolins rescued from the illegal wildlife trade typically suffer huge trauma during their time in captivity and are often extremely sick by the time they get to us. However, our growing expertise means that we are now saving around 75% of all pangolins that come to us.

Malawi has been on a remarkable journey over the better part of the last decade in an effort to protect its natural heritage. We are proud to support the Government in this work and thankful for the support of committed partners like the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.