Cambodia calls on local communities to participate in wildlife protection

The participation from local communities is crucial to eradicate all types of snaring in protected areas and illegal wildlife trade in Cambodia, officials and conservationists said on Thursday.

The Southeast Asian nation launched a "zero-snaring" campaign in protected areas on March 3.

"From local villager to local transporter, to city market food vendor to restaurant owner in town and consumer, the community participation plays an important role in making the forests safe for wildlife survival and in stopping poachers from setting-up snares in forest habitats," the Ministry of Environment's secretary of state Neth Pheaktra said in a joint statement.

He called on all people to stop consuming wild meat and all other wildlife products.

"We urge all people across Cambodia to say no to wild meat and participate in conserving the kingdom's natural resources," Pheaktra added.

From its official launch in Phnom Penh in early March to its begging rally in Stung Treng province on Thursday, the campaign calls for immediate actions to strengthen law enforcement and legislation to end poaching and snaring that are increasingly threatening Cambodia's wildlife.

"Strictly implementing law enforcement and bringing snare setters, hunters and wildlife traders to court are essential to end the killings," said Seng Teak, World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-Cambodia country director.

"Furthermore, all local bushmeat markets must be closed down and regularly monitored by the mobile law enforcement officers," he added.

Snares are the most dangerous device to kill wild animals. According to the Ministry of Environment, 61,611 snares had been removed from 72 protected areas and biodiversity corridors across Cambodia in 2021. In average, a total of more than 40,000 snares were removed per year.

Teak estimated that only 20 percent of the traps in the protected areas have been removed, as other 80 percent remain in place.