18.244 - 18.250 African lions (Panthera leo) and the CITES Big Cats Task Force

back to the Decisions page

18.244
Decision directed to:
Secretariat
Subject to external funding, the Secretariat shall, in collaboration with African lion range States, the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and, as appropriate, taking into consideration the joint CITES-CMS African Carnivores Initiative and the Guidelines for the Conservation of Lions in Africa:

a) support the implementation of activities in joint African lion conservation plans and strategies that relate to trade in African lion specimens and the implementation of CITES and, as needed, the review of such plans and strategies;

b) jointly with the CMS Secretariat undertake a comparative study of African lion population trends and conservation and management practices, such as lion hunting, within and between countries, including the role, if any, of international trade;

c) support capacity-building in African lion conservation and management including where appropriate, in the making of non-detriment findings by range States according to Resolution Conf. 16.7 (Rev. CoP17) on Non-detriment findings and the implementation of Resolution Conf. 17.9 on Trade in hunting trophies of species listed in Appendix I or II;

d) assist in maintaining a joint CITES-CMS webportal on African lions, that also allows for the posting and sharing of information and guidance on the conservation and management of African lions;

e) share the Guidelines for the Conservation of Lions in Africa and any relevant update with the Animals Committee for its review, as appropriate; and

f) report on the implementation of the present Decision to the 32nd meeting of the Animals Committee and the 74th meeting of the Standing Committee and to the Conference of the Parties at its 19th meeting.
18.245
Decision directed to:
Secretariat
The Secretariat shall:

a) draft, terms of reference and a modus operandi for the CITES Big Cat Task Force prior to convening its first meeting and submit it to the 73rd Standing Committee for review and adoption, and

subject to external resources:

b) establish and convene, in consultation with the Standing Committee, a CITES Big Cats Task Force (Task Force), focusing on big cat species from Africa, Asia and Latin America, and consisting of representatives from Parties most affected by the illegal trade in big cats, the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime partner organizations, other Parties and organizations, as appropriate, and experts who the Secretariat determines may contribute to the Task Force;

c) provide support to the Task Force allowing it, inter alia, to:

i) discuss enforcement and implementation issues related to the illegal trade in specimens of big cats;

ii) as deemed appropriate, exchange intelligence and other information on the illegal trade in big cats; and

iii) develop strategies and make recommendations to improve international cooperation regarding the enforcement of CITES concerning illegal trade in specimens of big cats; and

d) report the findings and recommendations of the Task Force to the 74th meeting of the Standing Committee for its consideration, and for making its own recommendations as appropriate.
18.246
Decision directed to:
Secretariat
The Secretariat shall, subject to external resources:

a) conduct further research and analysis on the legal and illegal trade in lions and other big cats to better understand trends, linkages between trade in different species, and the commodities in trade which contain, or claim to contain, such specimens;

b) assess whether the trade in lion specimens reported under purpose code “H” follows the guidance in Resolution Conf. 12.3 (Rev. CoP18) on Permits and certificates, paragraph 3 h), and whether additional reporting specificities or descriptions are needed;

c) develop guidance materials for the identification of lion and other big cat specimens in trade in consultation with relevant experts;

d) develop and support, in consultation with relevant experts, the use of appropriate forensic-type techniques for identifying lions and other big cat species in trade;

e) share relevant information generated through the implementation of this Decision with the CITES Big Cats Task Force; and

f) report on the implementation of the present Decision to the 32nd meeting of the Animals and the 74th meeting of the Standing Committees as appropriate, and to the Conference of the Parties at its 19th meeting.
18.247
Decision directed to:
Animals Committee
The Animals Committee shall:

a) review the Guidelines for the Conservation of Lions in Africa and any relevant update, as appropriate;

b) review the information reported by the Secretariat under Decisions 18.244 and 18.246, and submit recommendations to the Secretariat, the Standing Committee and African lion range States, as appropriate.
18.248
Decision directed to:
Standing Committee
The Standing Committee shall:

a) review and adopt the draft terms of reference, membership and modus operandi for the CITES Big Cat Task Force submitted by the Secretariat as per Decision 18.245, paragraphs a) and b) prior to convening the first meeting of the Task Force;

b) consider at its 74th meeting the reports submitted by the Animals Committee and the Secretariat, as per Decisions 18.244 to 18.247, and make recommendations to the Animals Committee, the Secretariat and African lion range States, as appropriate;

c) recommend further actions to be taken, including the possible need for the development of a draft resolution, on the conservation of the African lion taking into consideration Decisions 18.244, 18.245and 18.247; and

d) report on the implementation of Decision 18.248, and formulate recommendations as appropriate, to the Conference of the Parties at its 19th meeting.
18.249
Decision directed to:
Parties
Parties, including range States and consumer countries of African lion, as relevant, are encouraged to:
a) increase enforcement efforts to detect illegal, unreported or misreported trade in specimens of African lion and other big cats;
b) use, where appropriate, South Africa’s Barcode of Wildlife Project to help identify lion specimens in trade and, when importing lion specimens from South Africa, collaborate where necessary with relevant authorities in South Africa to improve the traceability of such specimens;
c) provide details on the observed and/or removed lion body parts in trade when collecting and communicating data on illegal killing and illegal trade in lions to CITES in their annual reports; and
d) cooperate on lion conservation, including by sharing information on lion populations, illegal killing and illegal trade.
18.250
Decision directed to:
Parties, Others
All Parties, governmental, intergovernmental, non-governmental organizations, donors and other entities are encouraged to support African lion range States and the Secretariat in their efforts to conserve and restore African lions across their range, taking into consideration the Guidelines for the Conservation of Lions in Africa; and in implementing Decisions 18.244 to 18.246, and 18.249.