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<p>In October 2018 the UK Government staged the largest ever international illegal
wildlife trade conference in London, where we reaffirmed our commitment to and leadership
in tackling this trade across the globe. The Conference Declaration was signed by
64 countries and builds on commitments made at the previous illegal wildlife trade
conferences in London, Kasane and Hanoi. The UK is investing more than £36 million
between 2014 and 2021 to take action to counter the trade, including work to reduce
demand, strengthen enforcement, ensure effective legal frameworks and develop sustainable
livelihoods. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/declaration-london-conference-on-the-illegal-wildlife-trade-2018"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/declaration-london-conference-on-the-illegal-wildlife-trade-2018</a></p><p>
</p><p>We have made progress in key areas in the six months since the London 2018
conference, including a successful workshop in Vietnam to look at ways to tackle the
demand for illegally traded species and products; the establishment and first deployment
of a new counter-poaching partnership programme to deliver counter-poaching training
for African park rangers; and progress with the WILDLABS Tech Hub which aims to harness
the power of technology, data sharing and machine learning to combat wildlife crime.
We also announced 14 new schemes that will each receive a share of £4.6 million from
the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund, and new education resources for schoolchildren
around the globe that aim to teach the next generation about the dangers of fuelling
the illegal wildlife trade. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-government-supports-global-action-to-fight-illegal-wildlife-trade"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-government-supports-global-action-to-fight-illegal-wildlife-trade</a></p><p>
</p><p>In December 2018 we passed tough new legislation to close our domestic ivory
market. The Ivory Act effects a total ban on commercial dealing in elephant ivory
with five narrow exemptions, and when it comes into force it will be the toughest
in Europe and one of the toughest in the world.</p><p> </p>
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