UK law banning ivory sales comes into force
105 tonnes of ivory burn on April 30, 2016 at a ceremony led by President Uhuru Kenyatta and attended by dignitaries at Nairobi National Park.
A United Kingdom law that bans the import, export and dealing in items containing elephant ivory took effect on Monday, June 6.
The Ivory Act came into force five years after African nations, including Kenya, through the African Elephant Coalition (AEC), implored the UK and the European Union to ban the sale of ivory.
This was after China had pledged to close down its ivory markets.
The trade in ivory is known to be a key contributor to poaching, which leads to a decline in elephant populations.
The new law will be instrumental in ensuring vital protection for the world’s elephants.
Jane Marriot, the British high commissioner to Kenya, said the ban will help protect wildlife in Kenya and the world.
“This ban on ivory sales demonstrates the UK’s commitment to tackling the illegal wildlife trade and conserving endangered species,” she said in a statement.
“The UK remains committed to continuing to work with Kenya to help government and law enforcement agencies disrupt the illegal wildlife trade that is threatening communities and species alike.”
For future generations
The new law represents a landmark moment in securing the survival of elephants across the globe for future generations, said Lord Goldsmith, the UK minister for the environment and animal welfare.
“Thousands of elephants are unnecessarily and cruelly targeted for their ivory every year for financial gain. As one of the toughest bans of its kind, we are sending a clear message that the commercial trade of elephant ivory is totally unacceptable,” he said.
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“The UK has long led the way in conservation and our ban shows continued global leadership in doing all we can to protect the world’s most endangered species.”
A census conducted by the Kenya Wildlife Service last year shows that the country’s elephant population rose to about 36,280.
In 2019, Kenya launched the “Ivory Trade Is a Rip Off” campaign that sought to spearhead the inclusion of the African elephant in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
