Senate approves wildlife protection bill, moves to toughen fight against trafficking

Nigeria’s Senate has approved the Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Bill, 2024, a comprehensive piece of legislation designed to curb wildlife trafficking, enhance enforcement powers, and align the country’s laws with global environmental treaties. The bill, which passed the House of Representatives in May, now awaits President Bola Tinubu’s assent to become law.

The measure represents the most significant overhaul of Nigeria’s wildlife protection framework in nearly four decades. It is widely viewed by environmental advocates as a turning point for one of Africa’s largest economies and one of its most notorious wildlife trafficking hubs.

“This is a huge win for Nigeria, and it shows, without any doubt, that we remain committed to stamping out wildlife trafficking and protecting our unique fauna and flora,” said Terseer Ugbor, deputy chairman of the House Committee on Environment and the bill’s sponsor. “Stronger laws mean Nigeria’s forests and wildlife will now be protected from exploitation and criminal activities. Protecting wildlife is tantamount to safeguarding our environment and our future.”

The new legislation updates the outdated Endangered Species Act of 1985, modernising penalties, expanding investigative powers, and providing mechanisms to target the financial underpinnings of illegal wildlife trade.

Under the bill, investigators will be authorised to probe financial transactions, conduct intelligence-led operations, and trace the proceeds of wildlife crime. Judges will be empowered to fast-track wildlife-related cases, impose stiffer penalties, and order the seizure of assets derived from illegal activity.

The law also strengthens international cooperation by harmonising Nigeria’s legislation with global conventions such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), enabling cross-border investigations and the extradition of offenders.

Environmental policy experts say these provisions will close long-standing legal loopholes that traffickers have exploited to evade prosecution or operate with impunity.

Nigeria has faced growing international scrutiny over its role in the global illegal wildlife trade. In the past decade, the country has emerged as a major transit hub for ivory, pangolin scales, and other contraband from across Africa, often destined for markets in Asia.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and other international agencies, Nigeria has been linked to the trafficking of more than 30 tonnes of ivory since 2015, and over half of the pangolin scales trafficked worldwide between 2016 and 2019 were traced back to shipments that passed through Nigerian ports.

Environmentalists say that such trafficking not only fuels species extinction but also undermines governance, drives corruption, and deprives local communities of biodiversity-based livelihoods.

“For too long, traffickers have used Nigeria as a transit country for the illegal wildlife trade, bringing endangered wildlife from all over Africa through our porous borders, ports, and airports to export them illegally to Europe and Asia,” said Tunde Morakinyo, executive director of the Africa Nature Investors Foundation (ANI). “The bill aims to halt this shameful trade which is destroying our environment and ruins Nigeria’s global reputation. We salute the Nigerian Senate for taking this bold step which will make Nigeria a global leader with one of the most progressive wildlife laws in Africa.”

International conservation groups have hailed the bill as a model for other African countries struggling to combat sophisticated wildlife trafficking networks.

Mary Rice, executive director of the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA UK), said the legislation demonstrates Nigeria’s growing commitment to combating transnational environmental crime.

“The passing of this key piece of legislation is a significant milestone for Nigeria and a demonstration of the country’s commitment to transitioning from a hub for wildlife crime to a leader in the fight against it,” Rice said. “It is imperative that this law is now implemented and used by investigators, prosecutors, and the judiciary to bring wildlife traffickers and other environmental offenders to justice.”

Peter Knights, CEO of Wild Africa (WA), added that swift presidential assent would help Nigeria showcase its leadership at the upcoming UN CITES meeting on trade in endangered species, scheduled for late November in Uzbekistan.

“We hope the President will move quickly to sign this bill,” Knights said. “To have this bill enacted before the CITES meeting would be a tremendous feather in the President’s and the country’s caps. It would show the administration’s commitment to playing a leading role in fighting wildlife crime.”

The legislative success is the product of years of advocacy and collaboration between Nigerian authorities, lawmakers, and international partners. The Africa Nature Investors Foundation (ANI), EIA UK, and Wild Africa have been instrumental in supporting the Nigerian government’s reform agenda, backed by funding from the Pangolin Conservation Fund, the UK Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund, the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, and the U.S. Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.

EIA has also committed to assisting with the implementation phase through the GUARD Wildlife Project, a European Union-funded initiative focused on capacity-building for enforcement agencies and judicial officers.

The bill’s passage comes amid a growing wave of environmental reform efforts across sub-Saharan Africa, where countries are strengthening laws to combat deforestation, illegal mining, and wildlife trafficking — all of which threaten the continent’s biodiversity and climate resilience.

In Nigeria, the move aligns with President Tinubu’s broader environmental and economic agenda, which seeks to attract sustainable investment, curb illegal resource extraction, and expand ecotourism.

Experts say effective implementation will be critical. Nigeria’s environmental enforcement agencies, including the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), the Nigerian Customs Service, and the National Park Service, have often faced resource constraints, bureaucratic overlaps, and corruption challenges that hamper enforcement.

The new law introduces stronger coordination mechanisms among these agencies and creates pathways for intelligence sharing and inter-agency task forces.

With the Senate’s approval secured, the bill now heads to President Tinubu for assent, a step environmentalists hope will happen before the November CITES summit. Once signed, the Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Act will officially replace the 1985 law and serve as Nigeria’s primary legal tool for protecting endangered species and prosecuting wildlife crime.

Ugbor said the law would mark a “new era” for Nigeria’s environmental governance.

“This legislation will ensure that wildlife crime is treated not as a marginal issue but as a serious, organised crime that threatens national and global security,” he said. “We are proud to see Nigeria take this bold step toward a sustainable and responsible future.”