Officials trained to combat illegal wildlife trade

LAHORE

WWF-Pakistan on Thursday organised a two-day long workshop to train representatives of law-enforcement agencies to combat the illegal wildlife trade in Pakistan.

Officials said the event was organised with the financial support of USAID through its Small Grants Ambassador Fund Programme. A total of 23 representatives of law enforcement bodies from the Punjab Wildlife Department, Pakistan Customs, Civil Aviation Authority, Punjab Police as well as Rescue 1122, and logistic operators participated in the event. The workshop facilitators included experts from the Ministry of Climate Change, Punjab Wildlife and Parks Department, Virtual University as well as WWF-Pakistan.

They highlighted various aspects of illegal wildlife trade, its scale and different forms in which this trade occurs globally. The participants also received hands-on training on the basic skills to rescue and handle confiscated wildlife. Another session focused on familiarising participants with species that are in high demand, the modes in which they are traded and identification of the species.

Experts also shared international regulations and national and provincial laws governing wildlife trade such as CITES and the Pakistan Wild Trade Control of Wild Flora and Fauna Act, 2012, etc with participants.  Speaking during the concluding session of the workshop, Zahid Bhatti, Deputy Director, Punjab Wildlife and Parks Department, appreciated this effort as a stepping stone to curbing wildlife crimes in the country.

Khizer Gillani, Field Operation Officer – Punjab, USAID Small Grants and Ambassador Fund Programme, acknowledged the fact that such events provide an excellent platform to the relevant departments together to explore synergies and gap areas for further improvement. 

This workshop is part of the consultative and training series, which are being conducted as part of the project Combating illegal wildlife trade by establishing a national monitoring network that benefits local communities and environment, supported by the USAID through its Small Grants Ambassador Fund Programme, to develop a national level strategy to combat illegal wildlife trade and build capacity of the relevant law enforcement agencies in Pakistan.

magazine: A launching ceremony of first official magazine named as “Phoenix 15” of Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Medical & Dental College, Lahore was held on Thursday.  Prof Dr Farid Ahmad Khan, Principal SKZMDC, and Chairman and Dean, Shaikh Zayed Medical Complex, appreciated the efforts of all the team members and congratulated them for their success.  Prof Dr Tafazzul-e-Haque Mehmud (Vice principal, SKZMDC), Prof Abdul Shakoor, Dr Nasreen (registrar), Dr Ayesha Humayun (registrar), faculty members and a large number of students participated.