| Sale of 89 tonnes of ivory to earn Tanzania Sh85bn | Send to a friend |
| Tuesday, 09 March 2010 10:41 |
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The government expects to get about Sh85 billion if it is allowed to auction 89 out of 127 tonnes of ivory in stock, the minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Ms Shamsa Mwangunga, has said. Speaking when gracing the launch of the federation of forestry products industries, known by its Kiswahili acronym as Shivimita in Dar es Salaam late last week, Ms Mwangunga said the government has asked for permission to dispose off the tusks which have been acquired legally. She said the government plans to use part of the money for protection of natural resources, an undertaking which needs a lot of money. She will be leaving on March 23, for Doha, Qatar, to push for the government’s application during the forthcoming Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meeting. She told delegates of a meeting held in Dar es Salaam that Zimbabwe, South Africa and Namibia, had applied for and were granted permission. “We believe that it is now the turn of Tanzania and Zambia to be allowed to sale part of ivory stock to raise money for other conservation related activities... although there are some CITES members who have raised objections on grounds that the move would attract poaching,” she said. CITES was forced a fortnight ago to come into the open refuting allegations that it favours proposals submitted by Tanzania and Zambia, which seek an authorisation to trade in stockpiled ivory, over the proposal submitted by the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Rwanda and Sierra Leone, which opposes such trade. CITES secretary general Willem Wijnstekers, said in a statement that his organisation would make its position known after a report by a panel of experts is published. He said there was no need to conduct extensive consultations on the proposals by Tanzania and Zambia as the proposals solely concern elephant population in the two countries and not the entire continent. Earlier, Ms Mwangunga hailed the formation of Shimivita and asked the new entity to put in place policies and strategies that would assist government plans to safeguard forests and the environment. She said the federation should also focus on educating the people on better use of natural resources. For instance, she said, because majority of rural dwellers depend on firewood as major source of cooking energy, they might be educated on the importance of planting trees so as to ensure continued availability of firewood. Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           |
