Transport and financial sectors join the fight against illegal wildlife trade

On Wednesday, April 6, the Colombian Ministry of Environment confirmed that ten companies that are part of the transport and financial sectors signed the statements of Buckingham Palace and Mansion House, through which they commit themselves to tackling the illegal trade in wildlife species in the country.

This announcement of the Environment portfolio was made in the middle of the II High-Level Conference of the Americas on the Illegal Trade in Wildlife taking place in Cartagena, Bolívar, which addresses different strategies to combat one of the environmental crimes with the greatest impact on Latin American ecosystems.

“We are gathered to work together with governments, international organizations, the private sector and also regional authorities to curb this illegal traffic that moves between 20 and 40 billion euros a year globally. This is affecting our biodiversity and the quality of life of all people. We all need to come together to identify those groups that are plundering our forests,” said Environment Minister Carlos Eduardo Correa.

For his part, the Vice-Minister for Environmental Policy and Standardization, Franco Cruz, stressed that these actions will contribute to the protection of biodiversity in the country and ensure that airports control illegal trafficking in species in a more effective way, while thanking the companies that were linked to them statements and that will contribute to minimizing this crime, noting that the private sector is “committed to the environment”.

Among the companies that signed this agreement are the airlines Avianca, Latam, Ultra Air, Viva Air, Wingo, Copa Airlines, Aero República; land transport companies Copetran, Flota de la Macarena, TDM Colombia, as well as Medellín airport and Banco de Bogotá, which according to Ambiente's portfolio would be the first as the financial sector commits itself to taking action to mitigate illegal wildlife trade in the country.

“Joining forces with the private sector is crucial, creating partnerships allows us to bring new voices to the conservation discussion to identify and implement solutions. Through the signing of the Mansion House and Buckingham Palace declarations, promoted by the Royal Foundation and United For Wildlife, the companies present at this ceremony are committed to precisely that, to being part of the solution,” said British Deputy Ambassador to Colombia, Tim Hemmings.

At the same time, the portfolio indicated that progress was made at the conference during the day with an agenda that addressed issues such as illegal trade and risks to human health, as well as financial sector commitments in the fight against illegal wildlife trafficking, and addressed issues such as strategies on exchange of information that will strengthen regional cooperation in addressing illegal wildlife trafficking, among others.

“This great agreement is going to help us in that fight because this effort is really needed. I am quite grateful to have chosen our city for this event. In Cartagena we know that wildlife is part of our urban ecosystems, and that's why we rescued more than 1,800 individuals during 2021, who were seized by the police,” concluded the director of the Public Environmental Establishment (EPA) in Cartagena, Javier Mouthon.

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