What's driving the wildlife trade? A review of expert opinion on economic and social drivers of the wildlife trade and trade control efforts in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, and Vietnam

This paper discusses the findings of a study  on the economic and social drivers of the wildlife trade in four south-east Asian countries, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR and Vietnam. It assesses the effectiveness of interventions that have been employed to halt illegal and unsustainable trade in their native flora and fauna.

The wildlife trade in south-east Asia has far-reaching effects on conservation and development at local, national and regional levels, as well as internationally. Characteristics of the trade are diverse and include:

• the economic benefits from participating in the wildlife trade are varied, generating a regular source of income for some. For others it provides an occasional income source, and in some cases a “safety net” in times of hardship. It can also be a lucrative business, attracting large amounts of money and generating very large profits
• the conservation impact is considerable - unsustainable, often illegal, exploitation of wild plants and animals is devastating the region’s biodiversity. The populations of many wildlife species with high commercial value, have declined drastically and many are now rare, endangered or locally extinct
• the wildlife trade may also undermine efforts to achieve sustainable development and poverty alleviation in the region, because it is depleting valuable natural assets upon which millions of people depend in part

Several interventions have been employed to address the illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade in south-east Asia, including:

• conventional “command and control” measures - tougher laws, regulations, enforcement and penalties restricting wildlife harvesting and trade
• attempts to secure more sustainable sources of wildlife products, such as, the domestication of key species, or the introduction of more sustainable resource management and harvesting techniques
• innovative mechanisms that aim to tackle the broader conditions that encourage people to participate in the wildlife trade, such as, supporting development of alternative livelihood options

However, the paper suggests that there remains little common understanding about the trade’s underlying economic and social drivers, or about the effectiveness and impacts of wildlife trade-related interventions in economic and social terms.This represents a serious constraint to designing comprehensive measures that will not only reduce illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade but also simultaneously result in tangible improvements in livelihoods, poverty reduction and the achievement of sustainable development goals.