Replicating Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System (WEMS)

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1 Replicating Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System (WEMS) Framework in Asia and Strengthening Transcontinental Collaboration Technology Engineering Environment Development Management

Executive Summary In September 2016, the United Nations University (UNU) and the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) signed a License Agreement for the deployment of WEMS through AIT.

compilation and analysis of data and with uniform compliance measuring mechanism to facilitate wildlife crime prevention enforcement efforts at the national, regional and global levels.

2 Executive Summary In September 2016, the United Nations University (UNU) and the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) signed a License Agreement for the deployment of WEMS through AIT. The Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System (WEMS) was developed by the United Nations University as a response to the United Nations member states call for a common framework in collection, compilation and analysis of data and with uniform compliance measuring mechanism to facilitate wildlife crime prevention enforcement efforts at the national, regional and global levels. WEMS provides a common platform for sharing information among national and local public sector agencies, thereby providing a means to support national enforcement efforts and compliance. WEMS can also act as a tool to integrate national efforts regionally and globally to cater timely analysis and policy development, with the goal of identifying risks early and developing corresponding action plans; thereby being a solution for monitoring compliance to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and related multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). AIT has established the WEMS Initiative through AIT Solutions to advance the model operational in Africa to initially implement in Bhutan and Thailand and eventually promote it in the region as well as establish an international community of practice to facilitate capacity building and knowledge transference at transnational and transcontinental level. The project will be executed by AIT in close collaboration with the Lusaka Agreement Task Force (LATF); Department of Forestry and Park Services (DoFPS), Bhutan; Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP), Thailand; and other National Enforcement Agencies and Regional Enforcement Networks in Asia and Africa, as appropriate. The initiative will forge partnerships among governments in Africa, Asia and other continents to orchestrate efforts geared at annihilating the global threat. Under the guidance of the Advisory Board, the WEMS Secretariat, established at AIT, will advocate WEMS, ensure pertinent capacity building and facilitate information exchanges and dissemination at national and international levels through the overall coordination with governments, MEA Secretariats, bilateral and multilateral development partners, academic and research institutions and other stakeholder organizations. Objectives 1. Strengthening monitoring of forest and wildlife crimes, compliance with national legislation and enforcement of the multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) in Africa, Asia and other continents based on the current African model; and 2. Reinforcing environmental governance at local, national, regional and global levels through capacity development and community of practice for knowledge transference, and researches and outreach to influence policies to counter illicit trafficking of wildlife and forest products in collaboration with governments, development partners, MEA Secretariats and other stakeholder organizations. 2 Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System

3 Background The journey that begun from Rio de Janeiro in 1992 as Agenda 21 and landed back in Rio de Janeiro in 2012 as The Future We Want, consistently underscored the member states enunciation on the criticality of information-sharing and the need for diffusion of appropriate informationsharing tools underpinned by improved capacity as priorities in the global south for the attainment of the internationally agreed development goals and the transition to sustainable development. In 2015, the adoption of the universal sustainable development goals (SDGs) further implored ideas for innovative technologies and approaches to fill probable data gaps, capability to employ them, and the ways those new technologies and existing data infrastructure can be brought together or used in parallel to produce improved development data. United Nations member states have also recognized that biological diversity, namely the fauna and flora both on land and under water, is integral for sustainable development. This natural capital ensures that our biosphere is in balance, ecosystems are perpetual and economies productive. Poaching and illicit trade in wildlife and forest products emerge as a major impediment for sustainable development. According to the recent UN report, globally, illegal wildlife trade has been identified as the fourth largest organised crime, in value, after narcotics, human-trafficking and weapons, estimated at USD 7 to 23 billion annually. The illegal trade involves a wide range of species including insects, reptiles, amphibians, fish, mammals and plants as well. Wildlife and forest crimes are multifaceted threats that do not only affect the species population but also upsets the ecosystem balance, deprives local communities of sustainable livelihood options, bereaves governments of revenues and undermines the rule of law. In The Future We Want, member states have agreed to promote international cooperation, appropriate partnerships and information exchange for conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and committed to provide the best available policy-relevant information on biodiversity to assist decision makers. Further, through Transforming Our World: 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the member states adopted the United Nations General Assembly Resolution on 25 September 2015 and reiterated their commitment to sustainable development underpinned by actions oriented towards people, planet, prosperity, peace and partnerships. The Sustainable Development Goals reflects the pledge to protect biodiversity, ecosystems and wildlife; and encompasses targets to end poaching and trafficking of protected species and strengthen relevant national institutions in developing countries to combat crime. However, burgeoning demand and globalization coupled with highly sophisticated and dangerous actors into the illegal wildlife trade arena have proven a deadly combination for many species and posed serious challenges in the conservation and enforcement efforts, which are exacerbated through further challenges including lack of resources, capacity and interagency cooperation among others. Understanding the shift and constraints, it is clear that the wildlife conservation and enforcement communities must channel their concerted efforts equipped with appropriate tools, technologies and approaches to effectively stem the tide of wildlife crime. The Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System (WEMS) was developed by the United Nations University as a response to the United Nations member states call for a common framework in collection, compilation and analysis of data and with uniform compliance measuring analysis to facilitate wildlife crime prevention enforcement efforts at the national, regional and global levels. The WEMS provides a common platform for sharing information among national and local public sector agencies, thereby providing a means to support national enforcement efforts and compliance. WEMS can also act as a tool to integrate national efforts regionally and globally to cater timely analysis and policy development, with the goal of identifying risks early and developing corresponding action plans and thereby being a solution for monitoring compliance to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and related multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). WEMS is designed to cater to the national government s needs in managing information and reporting them; and while doing so, provide evidence of efforts exerted by the respective governments in attaining their national targets and fulfilling their international commitments under the MEAs and for the SDGs. WEMS ascertains the ownership of data and the right of sharing them is retained with the respective national governments. The initiative will also create a regional framework for enhancing cooperation between policymakers, researchers and the enforcement community on wildlife crime data analysis and joint capacity building at regional and global levels. This will then automatically ensure the effective participation of developing countries as well as countries with economies in transition within a specific region, thereby facilitating active communication concerning CITES and other MEAs. This uniform framework will also ensure transparency and accountability built through a participatory approach. Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System 3

4 WEMS Initiative The WEMS Initiative will build upon the model operational in Africa to initially implement in Bhutan and Thailand and eventually promote it in the region as well as establish an international community of practice to facilitate capacity building and knowledge transference at transnational and transcontinental level. The project will be executed by AIT in close collaboration with LATF; Department of Forestry and Park Services (DoFPS), Bhutan; the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP), Thailand; and other National Enforcement Agencies and Regional Enforcement Networks in Asia and Africa, as appropriate. The initiative will forge partnerships among governments in Africa, Asia and other continents to orchestrate efforts geared at annihilating the global threat. Under the guidance of the Advisory Board, the WEMS Secretariat, established at AIT, will advocate WEMS, ensure pertinent capacity building and facilitate information exchanges and dissemination at national and international levels through the overall coordination with governments, MEA Secretariats, bilateral and multilateral development partners, academic and research institutions and other stakeholder organizations. The Secretariat s accountability, transparency and relationship with stakeholders will be governed by the following framework. MEA Secretariats Advisory Board Strategic Directions Reporting Planning Programming M&E AIT Reporting Reporting Feedbacks Contributions Funding Reporting Donors Reviews Information-sharing Reviews Feedbacks Reviews Feedbacks WEMS Database Capacity Development & Community of Practice Researches & Outreach National Focal Points e.g. Foresty, Police, Customs, Defense Partners e.g. AIT Schools/ Centers, Bilateral/Multilateral Development Partners, MEA Secretariats, INGOs/ NGOs Partners e.g. AIT Schools and Centers, UNU, UT, MEA Secretariats, Research Institutes, Media Local Focal Points e.g. National Parks, Borders, Port Stakeholders e.g. Policymakers, Practitioners, Civil Society Stakeholders e.g. Policymakers, Practitioners, NGOs, INGOs, Civil Society Reviews Information Reviews Capacity Reviews Awareness Wildlife Enforcement and Compliance 4 Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System

WEMS Africa WEMS Asia WEMS Secretariat COUNTRY COUNTRY COUNTRY NPMO NPMO NPMO NPMO SPO SPO SPO SPO CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE DEFENSE CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE DEFENSE COUNTRY A LATF CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE

5 The information-sharing protocol under the WEMS will be as depicted in the diagram below. For WEMS Africa, the LATF will facilitate the information exchange; while the role for WEMS Asia will be managed through the WEMS Secretariat at AIT. WEMS Africa WEMS Asia WEMS Secretariat COUNTRY COUNTRY COUNTRY NPMO NPMO NPMO NPMO SPO SPO SPO SPO CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE DEFENSE CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE DEFENSE COUNTRY A LATF CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE DEFENSE B CUSTOMS FOREST POLICE DEFENSE Y X NPMO: National Project Management Office SPO: Sub-Project Office Relationship to the internationally agreed development goals, and commitments Sustainable Development Goals 14 (Life below water), 15 (Life on land) and 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Convention on Biological Diversity (Strategic Plan for Biodiversity and Aichi Targets) UNGA Resolution A/RES/69/314 (Tackling the Illicit Trafficking in Wildlife) UNEP/EA.2/L.15/Rev.1 (Illegal trade in wildlife and wildlife products) Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System 5

6 Objectives and Expected Outcomes The overall objectives of the WEMS initiative are: 1. Strengthening of monitoring of forest and wildlife crimes, compliance to national legislation and enforcement of the multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) in Africa, Asia and other continents based on the current African model; and 2. Reinforcing environmental governance at local, national, regional and global levels through capacity development and community of practice for knowledge transference, and researches and outreach to influence policies to counter illicit trade in wildlife and wildlife products in collaboration with governments, development partners, MEA Secretariats and other stakeholder organizations. Expected accomplishments Establishment of common information-sharing mechanism for monitoring enforcement of and compliance to national level wildlife legislations and production of national law enforcement governance map in countries in Africa, namely Kenya, Liberia, Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia; and in Asia, namely Bhutan and Thailand. Strengthened capacity of the enforcement communities to gather relevant data and ensure appropriate use of information for improved environmental governance; and Enhanced transborder and transcontinental coordination through scale-up of the model in the countries in African, Asian and other continents, and institution of a community of practice for knowledge transference to enable the governments undertake concerted efforts to attain national targets and fulfil international commitments. Indicators of achievement Increased quality and coherence of information on wildlife crime available for monitoring enforcement and compliance in the country Increased number of robust reports, analyses and maps for enforcement communities and other stakeholders including policy-makers, public and media Improved quality of data collection and upload at grassroots and national levels Reduced frequency of troubleshoots, systems errors, incomplete information, etc. Timely availability of relevant information for different groups of stakeholders and interest groups Increased number of countries in Asia, Africa and other continents adopting the model for implementation Increased participation of African, Asian and European countries in the exchange of information and sharing of knowledge 6 Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System

7 Main activities Fine-tune WEMS software, deploy WEMS database and Analysis, and WEMS GIS. Organise training workshop for the nominated representatives from the participating agencies involved at local and national level to familiarise them with WEMS application. Carry out research and analyses of the data to determine trends and reasons for non-compliance, and identify weakness in legislation if any. Conduct review workshop at local and national level to assess the data entry and data utilisation processes, identify gaps and challenges and enumerate recommendations for effective implementation of WEMS and efficient use of the system. Undertake researches on environmental governance, ICT for development, etc. to enable the governments to make informed decisions concerning the issues of both wildlife policy and information-sharing mechanisms between governments. Disseminate findings of the project to relevant stakeholders in an effort to inform them of the project progress as well as raise awareness among them. Organise trainings for nominated trainees from governments to equip them with essential skills, techniques and knowledge required for implementing WEMS. Provide technical assistance for information collectors, information compilers, information analysts and information retrievers to overcome capacity gaps identified through the regular gap analyses. Conduct review workshops for users to exchange experiences and challenges, and derive recommendations for corrective action and further development of the system. Plan capacity building exercises on enforcement, data analysis and other relevant issues targeted at the policymakers, practitioners and young leaders. Showcase the WEMS success in the pilot countries in Africa and Asia during landmark events of regional and global significance to promote adoption of the system in other countries in Africa, Asia and other continents. Conduct intra-regional knowledge exchanges through study tours and joint workshops to draw on the strengths and lessons across the countries, regions and continents. Establish a community of practice among the implementing countries, other interested countries, regional bodies, enforcement networks, international organisations, etc. to garner exchange of best practices and lessons learnt to help jumpstart implementation in the newer countries. Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System 7

8 Technology Engineering Environment Development Management Postal Address: AIT Solutions, P.O. Box 4, Klong Luang, Pathumthani, 12120, Thailand Tel Fax : +(662) : +(662) : +(662) Website : aitsolutions@ait.asia :

Global Wildlife Cybercrime Action Plan1

Global Wildlife Cybercrime Action Plan1 A Call to Action for the London Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade October 11-12, 2018 1 Wildlife cybercrime in this context refers to cyber-enabled wildlife trafficking.