PARO, BHUTAN – Việt Nam confirmed its strong commitment to protect tigers and the country’s responsibility for biodiversity conservation in general and tigers in particular, within the framework of CITES conventions, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework to prevent and reverse biodiversity loss and meet the United Nations Development Goals (UNDGs).
Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nguyễn Quốc Trị, spoke at the ‘Sustainable Finance for Tiger Landscape’ Conference in Bhutan with the participation of leaders of thirteen tiger range countries.
The conference, which was hosted by the Royal Government of Bhutan, under the Royal patronage of H.E. the Queen of Bhutan, Jetsun Pema Wangchuck, aimed to secure significant international support for a range-wide tiger recovery plan that ties into national and global agendas on climate, biodiversity and the One Health Programme.
“Việt Nam, together with other countries, are taking actions to protect the tigers, its prey and phase out tiger farms that are not for conservation,” Trị said.
“Việt Nam is joining to discuss with leaders from range countries and international organisations to further advance tiger conservation efforts globally,” he added.
Even though tigers have not been recorded in the wild in Việt Nam since 2000, Việt Nam has issued a ban on trading wild tiger products. Illegal hunting, trading and farming is prosecuted according to the 2017 Penal Code. A national action on tiger conservation (2014-2022) was also launched to protect the species.
However, there are still factors that challenge the impact of these programmes including the high demand for tiger products; law enforcement capacity; lack of scientific study for tiger landscape recovery; the intricate web of trading online and offline; and tiger breeding facilities. These factors have driven tigers to the brink of extinction.
Tigers are one of the few species whose survival and recovery are so thoroughly intertwined with many of societies’ greatest challenges, including biodiversity decline, development and health concerns.
They are deeply embedded in the culture and beliefs of many countries – a symbol of strength, good luck and power. But in just over a century, the wild tiger population globally has suffered a devastating decline, losing around 97 per cent of their historic range.
