Direct, fast and flexible external funding support for law enforcement and related needs

A large portion of international funding support to counter wildlife crime is used for workshops and conferences, awareness creation and community mobilisation, general equipment and infrastructure, and implementing-NGO overheads. The terms of use for such funding are often dictated by the funding agency and the implementing NGO, rather than the government of the target country. While these interventions play an important role, they generally do not directly address the core challenge of countering wildlife crime. Government agencies often operate on limited budgets with restrictive procurement and approval procedures. This can inhibit rapid action, particularly in unforeseen crisis scenarios. Fast and flexible external funding support that is channelled directly into government operations can remove many of these constraints and unlock the full potential of government staff. In the context of countering wildlife crime, this enables government law-enforcement and conservation personnel to respond rapidly to incidents of any nature and effectively carry out their mandated duties. Importantly, funds must be channelled directly into operational activities, ideally via a local support NGO with minimal overheads, rather than becoming part of broader budgets that are prone to bureaucratic pitfalls.

  • Government willingness to receive direct external funding support for wildlife protection & law enforcement activities
  • International funding agency with flexible funding parameters
  • Local support NGO trusted by government & with proven track record in countering wildlife crime to act as conduit for funding with minimal overheads
  • Capacity building & individual empowerment of government law-enforcement & conservation personnel to enable them to effectively carry out mandated duties
  • A trusted local support NGO, with experience & understanding of the operational environment is important to secure international funding & channel this into priority government operations
  • Funding must be disbursed directly to mandated government activities for wildlife protection & law enforcement
  • Funding must be able to be disbursed as needed, 24 hours a day 365 days a year, to ensure rapid response capabilities at all times
  • Small pilot initiatives are valuable in testing systems & approaches
  • Strong relationships between key personnel are vital in achieving desired results