NCF, Birdlife mull coordinated action plans to safe vultures

Efforts to halt the declining population of vultures in the continent, especially in West Africa sub region is on top gear as the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) and BirdLife International are championing a coordinated action plan to save the situation. Safe

This was the major highlight of the discussion during the sub-regional vulture workshop co-organised by the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) and BirdLife International in Abuja.

The coming together of all stakeholders was geared towards developing an Action Plan to address key threats to vultures within the subregion – specifically those caused by human activities.

The three-day event was facilitated by the IUCN Conservation Planning Specials Group, and brought together more than 30 participants from 13 different countries including Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) National Focal Points, Raptors MOU National Contact Points, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) National Authorities, other government representatives, as well as academia and non-governmental organisations.

It is recognised that vultures played a vital role in the environment by keeping it free of decaying carcasses, but noted that these majestic birds have experienced catastrophic declines, with populations of all African vulture species plummeting by 70 -97 per cent over the last 50 years.

“In West Africa, widespread killing of vultures for belief-based use, where it is erroneously thought that vulture heads and other body parts have special powers and can bring good luck to users, threatens to wipe out stronghold populations of these critically endangered birds,” participants said.

Addressing other stakeholders, Director General, NCF, Dr. Joseph Onoja, stated that Nigeria is leading the effort to address the belief-based use by developing and promoting plant-based alternatives to vulture towards engaging users and traders on sustainable practices.

He pointed out that the outcome of the workshop would be shared with government in order to help improve the current process of strengthened wildlife legislation and policy in Nigeria.

Given the migratory nature of vultures and the transboundary nature of the threats in West Africa, Vulture Conservation Coordinator – Africa, BirdLife International, MsSalisha Chandra, is of the opinion that a coordinated action plan is crucial to address the decline of vultures in the subregion.

“This workshop gives us hope that we can quickly and urgently implement actions to halt these declines,” she said.

During the workshop, participants focussed on four main factors affecting vultures in the sub-region including killing of vultures for belief-based use, trade and use of vultures for belief-based use, cultural perceptions and beliefs around vultures, and indirect persecution.

The inviting character of the discussions facilitated by the IUCN Conservation Planning Specials Group allowed participants to openly contribute what they perceived as realistic solutions.

Participants were able to identify goals, actions, timelines, stakeholders and indicators relevant to achieving a common vision towards saving the threatened birds.

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Further discussions revolved around the development of a governance structure to oversee this action plan.

It was pointed out that the outcomes of the deliberations would be transformed into a draft action plan which will be reviewed by all meeting participants, before the final document is availed by the end of this year.

“My experience in this sub-regional action plan workshop in the last three days have improved my understanding of the West African challenges peculiar to vultures and the possible solutions that can be prioritized especially in the operationalization of the action plan developed, ” Vulture Project Coordinator at NCF, Mr. Solomon Adefolu, said.

Communications Manager,NCF, OladapoSoneye said the workshop was made possible with the generous collaborative support from EV NewLife partners, and Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) Raptors MOU.