IFAW meets EU Commissioner in push for stronger wildlife protections

Together, we called for stronger laws, sustained political commitment, and long-term investment to stop wildlife crime, close loopholes, and protect animals from exploitation.

Keeping Europe's wildlife trafficking action plan alive

The EU Action Plan against Wildlife Trafficking (WTAP) has been the cornerstone of Europe's response to one of the world's most profitable criminal activities. It has helped raise the political profile of wildlife crime, strengthen cooperation, and unlock funding to tackle trafficking networks. That progress must not stall.

The current plan runs until 2027. IFAW and partners welcomed the Commissioner's commitment to full implementation, while stressing the need to renew the plan before momentum is lost.

This matters because Europe remains both a destination market and a transit hub for illegal wildlife products. Since 2017, authorities across the EU have recorded an average over 6,000 annual seizures involving protected wildlife species listed under CITES.

Behind every seizure is an animal harmed, removed from the wild, or killed for profit.

Wildlife crime has moved online

Increasingly, wildlife trafficking is no longer happening only in ports, markets, or border crossings. It is happening on screens, through online marketplaces, social media platforms, and private messaging apps.

The EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), fully in force since February 2024, is an important opportunity to change that. The law is designed to ensure illegal activity offline is also illegal online.

IFAW is among the organisations recognised as Trusted Flaggers, enabling us to work directly with online platforms to identify and report illegal wildlife listings. We strongly support the European Commission's commitment to develop clear EU guidelines on the online wildlife trade under the Digital Services Act.

Ivory loopholes still put elephants at risk

Despite progress, ivory sales in Europe remain a serious concern. IFAW research published in 2024 found more than 1,300 ivory items listed for sale across online marketplaces in seven EU countries. Fewer than 10% of listings included verifiable proof that the ivory was legal. That means loopholes are still being exploited, and elephants continue to pay the price.

Some current EU ivory restrictions are not legally binding. By contrast, the UK Ivory Act, which is enforceable in law, led to a 66% drop in online ivory listings.

The EU now has a clear opportunity to strengthen its rules and shut down this trade for good.