CITES and ITC sign partnership on wildlife trade

The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) have signed a partnership aimed at enhancing the livelihood benefits of rural communities involved in global wildlife trade.

The collaboration will build the information gap between harvesters, producers, regulators, retailers and consumers operating at the market for products such as exotic skins, medicinal plants, natural fibres, and precious timber. These biodiversity products are crucial for the livelihoods of millions of people across the world and the impacts of ecosystem degradation, climate change and biodiversity loss will make them vulnerable
ITC and CITES will prepare in-depth analysis of the dynamics of value chains for selected species listed in CITES Appendix II. The partnership will strengthen ITC’s ability to build trade models that creates incentives for communities and SMEs to use and trade biodiversity products and services in a sustainable way.

Learn more: Read  ITC’s Executive Director -  Arancha Gonzales’s article on whether legal trade can save endangered wildlife in The Wall Street Journal and Alexander Kasterine,  Head of Trade and Environment Unit's article on trade and wildlife in Foreign Affairs.