Experts posit that the increased demand has encouraged illegal ivory trade and the poaching of elephant to meet market needs. According to an IFAW report Criminal Nature: The Global Security Implications of the Illegal Wildlife Trade , ivory smuggling and the wildlife trade has been linked to other forms of organized crime such as terrorism, illegal arms and drug trafficking. Seventeen per cent of illegal ivory seized worldwide in the past seven years was confiscated at Kenya’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Most illegal ivory is destined for Asia, in particular China, where it has soared in value as an investment vehicle and is coveted as “white gold”. Wildlife trafficking is one of the world’s most lucrative criminal activities – valued at billions of US dollars annually.

Source: The Star June 09, 2016 19:33 UTC