The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries will comment on all decisions taken at the 18th Conference of Parties to the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES COP18) at the end of the conference being held in Geneva, Switzerland.
“The decisions being taken at committee level are not final decisions of the COP and will still be voted on during the final High Level Plenary sessions to be held on 27 and 28 August 2019,” the department said in a statement on Wednesday.
South Africa will issue a comprehensive statement on decisions taken that affect species management and trade at the end of the conference.
With 183 parties, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) remains one of the world's most powerful tools for wildlife conservation through the regulation of trade.
Thousands of species are internationally traded and used by people in their daily lives for food, health care, housing, tourist souvenirs, cosmetics or fashion.
CITES regulates international trade in over 36 000 species of plants and animals, including their products and derivatives, to ensure their survival in the wild with benefits for the livelihoods of local people and the global environment.
The CITES permit system seeks to ensure that international trade in listed species is sustainable, legal and traceable. – SAnews.gov.za
