Nigerian lawmakers approve harsher penalties for wildlife traffickers

Nigeria’s Senate has approved a sweeping conservation bill introducing stiffer penalties for wildlife trafficking, including fines of up to ₦12 million ($8,200) and prison terms of as long as 10 years for offenders dealing in ivory, pangolin scales, and other endangered species.

The Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Bill, already passed by the House of Representatives in May, replaces decades-old legislation that prescribed lighter penalties of ₦100,000 ($68) or jail terms ranging from three months to five years.

Under the new law, Customs officers and wildlife investigators will gain expanded powers to track financial transactions, search and detain aircraft or vessels, and seize assets linked to the illegal wildlife trade. Courts will also be able to fast-track prosecutions of offenders.

The legislation bans the pollution of wildlife habitats and the consumption of endangered species, bringing Nigeria’s conservation framework in line with international treaties, including the UN Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

“This is a huge win for Nigeria and shows, without any doubt, that we remain committed to stamping out wildlife trafficking and protecting our unique fauna and flora,”
said Terseer Ugbor, the lawmaker who sponsored the bill.

Nigeria’s Role in Global Trafficking

Conservation groups have long identified Nigeria as a major hub in global wildlife smuggling networks, linking Africa’s poaching hotspots to buyers in Asia.
According to environmental watchdogs, criminal networks operating through Nigeria have been tied to more than 30 tonnes of ivory since 2015 and over half of global pangolin scale trafficking between 2016 and 2019.

Environmental organizations hailed the bill as a significant step toward curbing wildlife crime and dismantling trafficking syndicates.

“For too long, traffickers have used Nigeria as a transit country for the illegal wildlife trade, bringing endangered animals from across Africa through our borders, ports, and airports to export illegally to Europe and Asia,” Tunde Morakinyo, Executive Director of the Africa Nature Investors Foundation (ANI), told Reuters.

Groups have urged President Bola Tinubu to sign the bill into law before the CITES summit in Uzbekistan in November, where countries are expected to present progress reports on efforts to combat illegal wildlife trade.

Nigeria’s new framework aligns with international anti-trafficking standards and positions the country as a potential leader in West African conservation efforts. It follows years of pressure from global conservation partners, who warned that weak enforcement and light sentencing had turned Nigeria into a transit hub for illicit wildlife products.