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Secure Management of Ivory

Stockpiles of ivory, and other wildlife products, accrue from carcasses found in the wild or seized from poachers and traffickers. The storage and management of these objects is often woefully inadequate – enabling theft, or the neglect of evidence that is essential to securing wildlife crime prosecutions.

 

The leakage of ivory back into the illegal market, and the weak enforcement of wildlife protection laws, perpetuate the ivory trade and the continued slaughter of elephants. The EPI Foundation is working with EPI members and other African countries to mitigate these risks and secure Africa's ivory.

Stockpile Management System (SMS)

The EPI Foundation developed the Stockpile Management System (SMS), in partnership with conservation, audit and technology experts, to carry out inventories of ivory, rhino horn and other wildlife products held in government custody. Deployed across the majority of EPI member countries, the SMS is an essential tool in efforts to address the illegal wildlife trade across Africa and has been validated as a reporting tool by CITES.

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Gold Standards for the Management of Ivory & Other Wildlife Products

Ensuring that accurate inventories and audits of government stockpiles are possible, as well as keeping ivory out of the illegal wildlife trade, requires robust infrastructure and procedures. The EPI Foundation developed the Gold Standards, in partnership with conservation, security and built environment experts, to ensure that wildlife products are securely stored and transported, in line with CITES requirements.

Stockpile Team Lead

Ruth Musgrave

Ruth has a Masters in conservation and over 15 years' experience working in the sector, most of which was spent in the field in East and West Africa.

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Resources and Material

SMS Briefing Notes

A brief introduction into the Stockpile Management System (SMS), a mobile application-based inventory and management system for ivory and other wildlife products.

24 April 2024

Gold Standards Assessment Template

The assessment spreadsheet, which covers the range of subject areas as detailed in the Gold Standards

21 May 2024

Gold Standards Assessment Briefing Note

A short introduction on how to use the assessment spreadsheet or the application on an Android tablet

21 May 2024

Gold Standards for the Management of Ivory & Other Wildlife Products

The minimum and Gold Standards for different aspects of ivory and wildlife product management

21 May 2024

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