Corruption in Tanzania leading to downfall of elephant population

A new report published by the Environmental Investigation Agency revealed incidents of corruption that involved Chinese criminal gangs smuggling ivory out of Tanzania with the help of corrupt Tanzanian officials.

The U.K.-based environmental watchdog published the detailed report on Wednesday, providing detail on how a large number of elephants in Tanzania are slaughtered to meet the demands of the booming ivory trade in China.

Tanzania is the largest supplier of poached ivory in the world, and the illegal trade has resulted in the poaching of half of the country’s elephants in just five years.

Research also shows that the population of elephants in the Tanzania’s Selous Reserve — home to one of the largest faunal reserves in the world — dropped from 38,975 to 13,084 in just four years’ time. And in 2013 alone Tanzania lost 10,000 of its elephants to poaching, meaning the East African country lost more elephants than any other country in the world.

The Chinese-led gangs mentioned in the report have managed to use diplomatic visits made by President Xi Jinping and others senior Chinese officials to traffic large amounts of ivory out the country. These visits are said to have “created a boom in illegal ivory sales and caused local prices to double.”

A spokesman for China’s ministry of foreign affairs denied the report, telling the Associated Press that China has been consistent in its efforts to crack down on the smuggling of poached ivory.

In 2008, the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species granted China permission to buy 62 tons of ivory in an effort to preserve the country’s traditional ivory carving industry. The decision caused an increase in the demand for legal and especially illegal ivory.