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UNODC, within the framework of ICCWC, convened an Expert Group Meeting in Vienna in December 2014 that brought together the law enforcement and scientific communities. Participant experts included individuals from various national agencies, forensic and research scientists, front line law enforcement officials and legal experts. The meeting highlighted the need to address and discuss the challenges specific to timber identification cases and the processes and practicalities of the different areas of work and related expertise required. It also emphasized the

The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and its partners in the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) supported a one day workshop on CITES and a two-day cutting-edge training on wildlife law enforcement in Bangladesh on 5-7 October 2015. The training was tailored based on findings resulting from the implementation of the ICCWC Wildlife and Forest Crime Analytic Toolkit in the country, which produced a number of specific

In September 2015 over 40 law enforcement officials completed a three day comprehensive wildlife crime training course held in Accra, Ghana and in Dakar, Senegal. Ninety percent of all trade is conducted via maritime containers. Annually less that two percent are inspected. Therefore risk profiling of shipments and intelligence led interdiction are crucial to detecting illicit flows of wildlife and timber products to combat this form of organised crime. The workshops were designed to strengthen the investigation skills of the

On September 25, 2015, UNODC presented to the Government of Vietnam a report on the state of wildlife and forest crime (WLFC) in the country and the measures that need to be taken to address this growing problem. The report was a summary of the findings of the Vietnam Toolkit analysis that was requested to be implemented by the Vietnam government in partnership with the CITES Secretariat, INTERPOL, UNODC, World Bank, and the World Customs Organization. It comprised of a

For use of the media only; not an official document. PRESS RELEASE CITES Secretariat welcomes adoption of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals with specific Targets to end poaching and trafficking of wildlife Geneva/New York, 25 September 2015: The United Nations Sustainable Development Summit adopted today in New York the new global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) “setting out a supremely ambitious and transformational agenda” to 2030. The SDGs, which represent the agreed vision of the 193 Member States of the UN

The CITES Secretariat has received formal confirmation from INTERPOL, an ICCWC (International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime) partner, that Mr. Ansoumane Doumbouya, the former wildlife director and head of the CITES Management Authority of Guinea was arrested on 14 August 2015 by the Police (the National Central Bureau of Interpol) for his suspected role in corrupt and fraudulent actions in the issuance of CITES export permits. Whilst on mission in Guinea in 2011 to investigate concerns regarding illegal trade involving

For use of the media only; not an official document. JOINT PRESS RELEASE Successful operation highlights growing international cooperation to combat wildlife crime Geneva, 18 June 2015 - The International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) welcomed today the results achieved during Operation COBRA III, an international law enforcement operation conducted in May 2015 with the aim of combating wildlife crime and bringing the criminals involved to justice. Operation COBRA III resulted in 139 arrests and more than 247 seizures

Wildlife and Forest Crime: A Serious Crime A High-level Side Event at the 13th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Opening remarks by John E. Scanlon, Secretary-General, CITES Doha, Qatar, 13 April 2015 Mr. Sam Kutesa, President of the 69 th Session of the UNGA Mr. Yury Fedotov, Executive Director of UNODC Distinguished panelists and delegates On 3 March, the date of the adoption of CITES, we celebrated UN World Wildlife Day for the second time under the