THE GLOBAL Environment Facility (GEF) has approved an additional $40-million fund to fight illegal trafficking of wildlife in 19 countries, including the Philippines.
Fresh funds for the Global Wildlife Program includes contributions from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Asian Development Bank, International Union for Conservation of Nature, UN Development Program, World Bank Group and World Wildlife Fund.
The latest beneficiaries are the Philippines, Afghanistan, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam and Zimbabwe.
Before that, the program benefited efforts in Botswana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Gabon, India, Indonesia, Mozambique, Congo, Tanzania and Zambia.
According to UNEP, the value of illegal trade in wildlife has been estimated at between $10 billion and $23 billion yearly. This makes wildlife trafficking the fourth most lucrative illegal business after narcotics, human trafficking and weapons.
The announcement expands the program to strengthen the capacity of governments to combat poaching and trafficking of wildlife, and wildlife products in key range and transit countries that are in the front lines of combating wildlife crime.
GEF has granted funding for 51 projects in the Philippines at a total of $213.77 million. These include initiatives related to biodiversity, climate change, land degradation and international waters.
In countries where contraband wildlife originate, activities in the Global Wildlife Program will include enhancing anti-poaching tracking and intelligence operations, increasing the size of conservation areas and improving their management, and providing opportunities for development through nature-based tourism and other agriculture, forestry and natural resource projects that benefit local communities.
In transit countries, the Global Wildlife Program will support anti-smuggling and customs controls, while in demand countries, it will initiate targeted awareness-raising campaigns to help increase legal deterrents for purchase of wildlife and wildlife products.