NIGERIA: A GLANCE AT THE STATE OF WILDLIFE AND FORESTRY IN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 000001

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR OES/ENV FOR PRATHER

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV ENRG ECON TRGY KRVC TPHY NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: A GLANCE AT THE STATE OF WILDLIFE AND FORESTRY IN
NIGERIA

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - DO NOT DISTRIBUTE OUTSIDE USG.


1. (U) Summary: ESTHOff and visiting REO met with key Nigerian
federal officials responsible for wildlife and forest conservation
and management November 26-29. Ownership of the major Nigerian
wildlife and forestry reserves transferred from the federal
government to the states starting in 2000 without a coherent
conservation policy and adequate legal framework in place and
technical capacity for the states to manage and use these national
treasures in a sustainable manner. From thereon, the state of
forestry and wildlife has been on a decline, leading to increased
poaching and illegal logging, according to the officials. In 2005
wildlife inspectors were removed from Nigerian airports, seaports,
and border checkpoints under a reorganization move. Since then,
there have been no clear mechanisms to prevent trafficking in
wildlife and wildlife parts and products from the country. For this
reason, Nigeria was suspended two years ago from the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
(CITES). The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has been working
with the Federal Government of Nigeria and concerned states to
promote conservation and plans to submit grant proposals under the
Department Economic Support Fund to promote conservation in Yankari
and Calabar national parks. End Summary.

Conservation not a Priority
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2. (SBU) Mr. John Mashelbwale, Assistant Director for the Nigeria
Wildlife Services and CITES Officer for monitoring the illegal
killing of elephants (MIKE),said that Nigerian wildlife
conservation efforts are fraught with problems ranging from the lack
of adequate resources to lack of enforcement authority over
state-owned game reserves and forests. According to Mashelebwale,
the downward slide started in 2000 when, as part of the GON's
decentralization program, ownership of the national parks
transferred from the federal government to the states, even though
the latter have little or no capacity in wildlife and forestry
conservation and management. Most states see the reserves primarily
as a source of income (from tourism) and do very little to advance
conservation. They lack comprehensive laws, wildlife and forestry
management plans, qualified personnel, and resources to promote
conservation and sustainable ecotourism. The result, according to
Mashelbwale, has been a deteriorating wildlife habitat, increased
poaching and illegal trafficking of wildlife and wildlife parts
outside of the country.

Nigeria Suspended from CITES
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3. (SBU) Nigeria was suspended from the CITES convention in 2005 for
failure to make sufficient progress in cracking down on illicit
trade in endangered wildlife. Wildlife officials stated that
illicit trade in wildlife is thriving because of the lack of
institutional mechanisms to prevent illegal hunting and trade.
Since 2005, wildlife inspectors have not been posted at Nigeria's
airports, seaports and international border crossings. According to
Mashelbwale, there has been some political wrangling to reinstate
the wildlife inspectors; however, currently there is no funding to
do that. Wildlife officials identified Hajj and Umra chartered
flights as convenient conduits for trafficking wildlife,
particularly parrots and ivory, out of the country. Trafficking
overland is also rampant, according to these officials. They said
that fuel tankers are used to smuggle hides and skins and ivory to
and from Nigeria to neighboring Central African Republic, Chad,
Cameroon, and Gabon.

Yankari National Park
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4. (U) Yankari National Park, about 300 kilometers northeast of the
capital Abuja, is Nigeria's most famous game park and home to one of
the few viable elephant populations in West Africa. The park's
ownership was transferred to Bauchi State in 2006, after the Federal
Government lost a court battle to prevent the transfer. The park
does not have a wildlife management plan, professional workforce, or
adequate equipment (e.g., patrol cars and other game warden tools)
to fight poaching and promote ecotourism. Federal conservation
officials stated that poaching is on the rise and expressed
apprehension about the ongoing viability of the colony without
improved game management and conservation efforts.


5. (SBU) Highlighting the deteriorating situation, Mr. Jarafu Mamza,
Director of Nigeria's National Park Service stated that the last
significant recovery of 446 pieces of elephant ivory took place in
1996, despite recent indications that the elephant population in the
country is dwindling. According to the director, Sambiza Forest

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Reserve in Borno State, northeast Nigeria, lost its elephant
population of 200 to 300 in the 1990s due to insufficient attention
to conservation and insistent poaching. He wants to work with
Bauchi State to prevent the same fate befalling the elephant
population in Yankari. To combat trafficking, the Nigerian Park
Service, in collaboration with Interpol's Working Group on Wildlife
Crime, is establishing a Wildlife Crime Intelligence Unit. The unit
is expected to be up and running in the New Year and is expected to
enhance the agency's ability to combat trafficking.

Nigeria's Forests under Threat
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6. (SBU) Mrs. Ann Ata, Director of the Nigerian Forest Service,
described Nigeria's forest reserves as badly managed and under
constant threat from deforestation, desertification, and illegal
logging. She said that Nigeria is loosing its forests at the rate
of 3.5% per year, the highest in Africa primarily due to harvesting
of firewood and drought. She added that Nigeria did its last forest
survey in 1995 and desperately needs to conduct a new one, which is
essential to develop and implement an effective conservation
strategy. Like the game reserves, Nigeria's forest reserves are
owned and managed by the states; however, most of them have no
forest management plan, laws, or qualified personnel to manage and
conserve their forests. According to the director, although state
governments give out logging concessions and generate revenue they
rarely use the income to reinvest in their forests. Cross River
State in the south is the only one that has laws and is doing a
better job in managing its forest reserves, according to the
director.

Comment
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8. (U) The state of Nigeria's wildlife and forestry is under threat
from natural and manmade causes. Nigeria's decentralization of
ownership of national reserves to the states can have some
advantages; however, without proper local capacity to effectively
protect and manage them the long term viability and sustainability
of these treasures is in serious jeopardy. The states need to
strike the right sustainable balance between income generation and
conservation and need to coordinate with their national counterparts
to promote a coherent policy. The WCS has been working with the
Federal Government of Nigeria and concerned states to promote
conservation in Calabar and Yankari reserves. Post and the Regional
Environmental Office have initiated discussions with concerned
state, federal and WCS representatives to develop proposals for
consideration under Department Economic Support Fund for elephant
conservation in Yankari and great apes in Calabar. End Comment).

9. This cable has been coordinated with Consulate Lagos.

SANDERS