Nigeria has formally joined the Elephant Protection Initiative, EPI, a coalition of African countries dedicated to the sustainable conservation of elephants, and ending the ivory trade.
This was disclosed at the EPI’s inaugural Consultative Group meeting during the Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference in London.
It was attended by ministerial delegations from several countries, including Nigeria’s Minister of State for the Environment, Ibrahim Jibril.
Nigeria was welcomed as the 19th member state and will work with other countries on ways of shutting down internal ivory markets and developing a National Elephant Action Plan.
The Elephant Protection Initiative was founded in 2014 by the leaders of Chad, Gabon, Ethiopia, Botswana and Tanzania.
