4 March 2013: A joint side-event by the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES) was held on “The Saiga Antelope: Challenges and Opportunities for Conservation and Sustainable Use.” It was co-hosted by China and the Russian Federation on the sidelines of the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP 16) to CITES.

Melanie Virtue of the CMS opened the event by providing a brief introduction to the Convention. Christiane Roettger, also CMS, noted that saiga is used for its meat and horns, which are used in Chinese traditional medicine. She also highlighted that, in 2010, around 12,000 (1/3 of the sub-population) saiga died, with additional deaths recorded in 2011. She noted that fences represent a threat, pointing out that the border fence between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan limits the migration of saiga on the Ustyurt Plateau. She introduced the Saiga Medium-term International Work Programme 2011-2015 and emphasized cooperation with CITES and the CMS-CITES Joint Work Programme 2012-2014.

Anton Mezhnev, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Russian Federation, highlighted the human-related threats to saiga, including competition with livestock, especially in the northwest Pre-Caspian region. He proposed including saiga in the Red Data Book of the Russian Federation and uplisting saiga to Appendix I of CITES.

Roettger also presented on behalf of Kazakhstan on conservation efforts in the country. She highlighted the spike in seizures of horns in 2012. Lu Xiaoping, China, provided an overview of the recommendations from a workshop held in Urumqi, China, noting the desire of his country to join international efforts to conserve the saiga. Tom de Meulenaar, CITES Secretariat, highlighted the additional measures adopted by CITES to conserve the saiga, including those proposed at CoP 16. [IISD RS Sources] [CITES CoP16 Working Document Saiga Antelope] [CMS Press Release]