Secretary Jewell Discusses Combating Wildlife Trafficking with African Nations

PARIS, France – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today participated in bilateral meetings with three African nations focused on furthering partnerships to combat wildlife trafficking. The meetings come amid a growing poaching crisis that is pushing populations of African elephants, rhinos and other irreplaceable species to the brink of extinction.

The meetings took place in Paris, where Secretary Jewell is participating in the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference.

Jewell met separately with senior officials from the countries of Gabon, Kenya and Namibia to discuss the countries’ shared commitment to addressing climate change, conserving protected areas and fighting wildlife trafficking in partnership with other consumer, transit and source countries.  

Jewell is expected to travel to Africa in early 2016 to continue these discussions. In July, Secretary Jewell traveled to China andVietnam to meet with senior government officials to build international cooperation to combat wildlife trafficking. This international outreach is part of President Obama’s National Strategy to Combat Wildlife Trafficking, put in place in 2014, following his Executive Order on combating wildlife trafficking.

The Trans Pacific Partnership agreement, which is undergoing public and congressional review, includes the strongest international commitments to fight the illegal trade in endangered species of any trade agreement in history.