Final Draft Consensus Statement on bushmeat.

On 19 February 1999, 34 experts, representing 28 different organizations, assembled at the offices of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA) in Silver Spring, Maryland to discuss the commercial bushmeat crisis in Africa and its impact on threatened and endangered species, particularly great apes. Participants in this meeting and many others in a growing worldwide network of concerned conservationists, zoo biologists, animal welfare advocates, and medical researchers, have developed the following consensus statement:

While we have our differences in approach, there is strong consensus that the commercial bushmeat trade in Africa is having dire consequences, not only for wildlife, but also for people in Africa and throughout the world. If current unsustainable rates of exploitation continue, the commercial bushmeat trade will decimate, if not eliminate, some endangered species, such as great apes, forest elephants, and other fauna upon which the health of forest ecosystems depend. Indeed, it may have already caused the extinction of Miss Waldron's red colobus monkey, which formerly existed in the forested zones of Ivory Coast and Ghana.

The African great apes-chimpanzees, gorillas, and bonobos-are at particular risk. In fact, this illegal trade is destroying free-ranging populations of chimpanzees just when their protection in the wild is being recognized as important for understanding how to control the spread of HIV and other emerging infectious diseases in humans. Moreover, the killing and dressing of chimpanzee meat in the bush may present a human health risk for those engaged in this trade and is a potential point of entry for new diseases into the global human population.

Therefore, this group of concerned organizations and individuals is united in calling for immediate steps to halt the negative consequences of the illegal commercial trade in endangered and threatened species. The most pressing of these steps is the need for a wide array of mechanisms for public education in Africa and throughout the world as to the causes, consequences, and appropriate solutions to this crisis. This public education campaign should begin as soon as possible.

The governments of developed nations and, in particular, multilateral aid agencies, should redouble their commitment to conservation and sustainable development in Africa. They, along with corporate donors and foundations, should provide the human and financial resources necessary to seek workable solutions. African governments and conservation organizations have helped to establish a network of protected areas. However, there is presently inadequate political will and financial support to maintain a viable protected area system. Until responsible environmental planning is a condition for international development loans and financing, until African governments take full responsibility for enforcing existing laws and maintaining vigilance against corruption, and until policy makers put the value of protecting wildlife ahead of immediate financial gain, there will be no way to stem the loss of Africa's irreplaceable biological heritage, including our closest living relatives, the great apes. Logging companies, mining firms, and other extractive industries bear a significant responsibility for the growth of the unregulated commercial bushmeat trade. They must ensure that illegal hunting of threatened and endangered species is prohibited in their concessions and minimize their impact on wildlife by providing alternative sources of food for their employees. They should also do all they can to contribute to equitable, transparent, and lasting solutions.

All of the organizations and individuals endorsing this statement will ensure that a common response to both the conservation and medical challenges is built upon a foundation of respect for the people who live in the areas in question. Solutions to the current bushmeat crisis must be developed in cooperation with the citizens of Africa, with their needs and aspirations in mind. This is especially important given that bushmeat has provided and continues to provide an important food source for the rural inhabitants of bushmeat trade countries.

Over the next several weeks and months, the Bushmeat Crisis Task Force, will work with others to better define both the immediate, as well as the medium and long-term components of this important campaign. In the meantime, we will be working with like-minded organizations and individuals in Africa, Europe, and throughout the world to help respond to this crisis. There is hope for a solution but action must be taken soon.

American Society of Primatologists
Andrew Plumtre, Ph.D. Wildlife Conservation Society
Angela Meder, Ph.D., Berggorilla & Regenwald Direkthilfe
Beatrice Hahn, Ph.D., University of Alabama at Birmingham
Bonobo Conservation Initiative
Center for Applied Biodiversity Science
Conservation International
David Wilkie, Ph.D., Boston College
Elizabeth Bennett, Ph.D., Wildlife Conservation Society
Francine Madden, The Fund for Animals
Gustavo Fonseca, Ph.D., Executive Director, Center for Applied Biodiversity Science
Jane Goodall Institute
Jannette Wallis, Ph.D., University of Oklahoma, American Society of Primatologists
Jef Dupain, Ph.D., Bonobo In Situ Project, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp
John Hart, Ph.D., Wildlife Conservation Society
John Oates, Ph.D., Hunter College, City University of New York
Karl Amman, Bushmeat Project
Kenneth O Ekechukwu, Case Western Reserve Univeristy
Michael Woodford, DVM, IUCN Species Survival Commission Veterinary Specialist Group
Nederlandse Vereniging voor Hulp ann Dieren
Norm Rosen, Ph.D., California State University, Fullerton
Primate Soxiety of Great Britain
Rainforest Action Network
Randy Kyes, Ph.D., University of Washington, American Society of Primatologists
Richard Carroll, Ph.D., World Wildlife Fund, U.S.
Richard Wrangham, Ph.D., Harvard University
Russell Mittermeier, Ph.D., President, Conservation International
Sally Jewell Coxe, Bonobo Conservation Initiative, Tierhilfswerk Austria
Anthoney Rose, Ph.D., Antioch University, Los Angeles, Bushmeat Project
Meg Verhees, Nederlandse Vereniging voor Hulp ann Dieren
Wildlife Conservation Society
World Society for the Protection of Animals
World Wildlife Fund, U.S.