UK Gov't Allocates $5.9Mln To Fight Illegal Wildlife Trade Worldwide - Statement

The UK government on Monday announced that it is going to direct at least 4.6 million pounds ($5.9 million) in funding to projects countering illegal wildlife trade around the globe

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd April, 2019) The UK government on Monday announced that it is going to direct at least 4.6 million Pounds ($5.9 million) in funding to projects countering illegal wildlife trade around the globe.

"Ministers have today marked Earth Day (22 April) by announcing that the schemes will each receive a share in 4.6 million from the Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) Challenge Fund," the government said in a statement.

The initiatives which are due to benefit include Fauna & Flora International project for reducing demand for marine turtle in Nicaragua, cracking down on wildlife smuggling in Madagascar, strengthening anti-poaching techniques in Uganda and ZSL group's work to disrupt the illegal trade in grey parrots in Cameroon.

Environment Minister Therese Coffey called the illegal wildlife trade "an international tragedy.

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"This serious organised criminal networks do more than just damage wildlife - corruption and illegal activities undermine sustainable development and the rule of law, bringing misery to local communities," she said in a statement which was published by the UK government.

In the meantime, the authorities also launched new education resources for school children worldwide. Now online packs are due to teach children about the dangers of illegal wildlife trade in multiple languages. The government allocated 40,000 pounds for the project.

The World Wide Fund, a renowned international non-governmental group, considers illegal wildlife trade "the second-biggest direct threat to species" after habitat destruction. The group often draws an example of African elephants, saying that around 20,000 of them are killed by poachers every year.