Why CITES Was Needed

• Poaching crisis: African elephant numbers fell from 5 million (1950) to <1 million by the 1980s, driven by demand for ivory and proliferation of weapons after post-colonial wars.

• Global ivory trade: Extended beyond Africa, with economies in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, Taiwan, Macau deeply dependent on ivory processing.

• Symbolic protests: In 1989, Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi set fire to 12 tonnes of ivory, followed by stricter measures like shoot-on-sight orders for poachers.

Birth of CITES

• Origins: Proposed (1963), ratified (1973), enforced (1975).

• Founder influence: Julian Huxley (evolutionary biologist, first UNESCO DG) was instrumental in global conservation networks (IUCN, Red List, CITES).

• Membership: 80 initial signatories → now 185 countries.

• Appendices system:

• Appendix I: Species threatened with extinction → trade banned (except in exceptional cases).

• Appendix II: Species not threatened with extinction but at risk → controlled trade.

• Appendix III: Species protected in at least one country → controlled with others’ cooperation.

• The initial idea for CITES was conceived at a meeting of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
• CITES is administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
• established by an international agreement drafted in 1973 in washington and it came into force on July 1, 1975

Ivory and Elephants – A Case Study in CITES

• Initial weakness: African elephant first placed in Appendix II, allowing continued trade.

• Loopholes: Ivory Producers Export Cartel (led by Rowan Martin, Zimbabwe) legalized poached ivory via “worked ivory” exemptions and government collusion.

• Turning point:

  • 1989 US Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) report exposed corruption and smuggling.

  • CITES finally banned ivory trade completely (1989).

  • Elephant populations showed recovery.

• Setbacks:

  • 2008 one-off amnesty sale reopened markets → poaching spiked.

  • 2011 & 2016 ivory burnings in Kenya highlighted renewed urgency.

  • Today: Fewer than 500,000 African elephants remain.

Wider Impact of CITES

• Successes:

  • Decline in commercial whaling.

  • Sharp reduction in illegal bird trade (parrots, raptors).

  • Protection extended to ~40,000 species (snails, trees, insects, flowers, animals).

• Strength: Binding trade controls, with sanctions against non-compliant countries (e.g., suspension of all wildlife trade).

• Weaknesses:

• Heavily dependent on government cooperation.

• Vulnerable to corruption, lobbying, and political elites profiting from poaching.

• Demand pressures persist (e.g., tiger bones, rhino horn, pangolin scales, driven by China, Vietnam, and global traditional medicine markets).

Critical Assessment

• Strengths of CITES:

  • Provides a legally binding, global framework with real enforcement power.

  • Expanded coverage to tens of thousands of species.

  • Established trade monitoring systems (permits, stockpile registration).

• Weaknesses:

  • Slow decision-making (took 10 drafts before adoption).

  • Loopholes and one-off amnesties reopen illegal trade pathways.

  • Struggles against organized crime and armed groups financing themselves through wildlife trafficking.

• Overall:

• CITES remains imperfect but indispensable.

• Its impact depends on political will, local enforcement, and international cooperation.

• At 50 years, it demonstrates both the possibilities and limits of global environmental governance.