CITES Standing Committee agreed to lift the trade suspension against Nigeria, given the progress in implementation of the Convention, as well as a trade suspension on a pharmaceutically important tree from India.
It also recognized Peru's efforts for sustainable harvest and trade of mahogany.
26 August 2011: The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) has announced the withdrawal of the recommendation to suspend trade with Nigeria, following the decision by the 61st meeting of the Standing Committee (SC 61) to lift the suspension.
The withdrawal of the Nigeria recommendation, which has been in place since 2005 because of increasing illegal wildlife trade and a lack of adequate enforcement, follows evidence of compliance with the Convention. Nigeria has designated the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) as the country’s new CITES enforcement authority, and enacted new wildlife regulations. The regulations, the Secretariat notes, fully comply with CITES requirements and can be ranked as Category 1 under the CITES legislation project.
The CITES Standing Committee also recognized Peru’s efforts to establish restrictive mahogany export quotas and reliable verification systems to ensure that harvest is sustainable and trade legal.
CITES further decided to lift a recommendation to suspend trade in Himalayan yew (Taxus wallichiana) from India, a tree with important pharmaceutical uses. [CITES Press Release]