LATF Co-Organizes the first Kenya-Tanzania Wildlife Institutions Director’s Forum
On 28th January 2011 Ag Director General of Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) held consultative wildlife Security Meeting with his counterpart from Kenya Wildlife Service at KWS Hqs, Nairobi under the auspices of Lusaka Agreement Task Force (LATF). This followed the loss of one of the five Rhinoceros recently re –introduced from South Africa into Serengeti National Park which was victim of a poaching incident in December 2010. The three Directors together with their senior intelligence and investigations officers strategized on how to deal with the incident and such other incidents along the common borders in future. A joint operational plan was drawn and agreed upon for immediate implementation by the three institutions.
The Directors resolve to enhance their direct interaction through proactive communication and regular interagency forums towards addressing transnational wildlife law enforcement and conservation challenges. The need for holding the already planned Annual Wildlife Directors meeting for Kenya and Tanzania was reiterated and LATF urged to continue co-ordinating the preparations with Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the Tanzanian counterparts which include Tanzania Wildlife Division (TWD), Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) and Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) for the purpose as co-operative enforcement operations are a key strategy to succeed in combating cross border wildlife crime.