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CITES Secretariat
Introduction to
CITES
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CITES
CITES is the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna
and Flora
CITES was signed on 3 March 1973,
and entered into force on 1 July 1975
CITES has been in operation
for almost 40 years
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CITES
The purpose of CITES is to ensure that wild
fauna and flora in international trade are not
exploited unsustainably
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CITES
CITES is an international convention that
combines wildlife and trade themes with a
legally binding instrument for achieving
conservation and sustainable use objectives
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CITES
The Convention establishes
an international legal
framework together with
common procedural
mechanisms for the strictest
control of international
commercial trade in species
threatened with extinction,
and for an effective
regulation of international
trade in others
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CITES
This framework and common procedural
mechanism are now used by 180 countries to
regulate and monitor international trade in
listed species
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CITES Text
The text of the Convention outlines the basic
provisions for trade and obligations of each
Party, including:
Trade procedures Marking
and requirements
Confiscations
Enforcement Reporting
measures
Trade with non-
Trade facilitation Parties
Exemptions and Amendment of the
special procedures Appendices
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Resolutions and Decisions
The Conference of the Parties adopts
Resolutions to guide the interpretation and
implementation of the Convention, and
Decisions to provide specific short-term time-
bound instructions
89 Resolutions and 196 Decisions
are in effect
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CITES Appendices
Species subject to CITES regulation are
divided amongst three Appendices
I
II
III
"Species" means any species, subspecies, or
geographically separate population thereof
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CITES Appendices
Appendix I
Species threatened with
extinction, which are or may
be affected by trade
International (commercial)
trade in wild-taken
specimens is generally
prohibited
625 animal species and 301
plant species
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CITES Appendices
Appendix II
Species not necessarily
threatened with extinction, but for
which trade must be controlled to
avoid their becoming so, and
species that resemble species
already included in Appendix II
International trade is permitted but
regulated
4685 animal species and 29105
plant species (97% of all listings)
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CITES Appendices
Appendix III
Species for which a country is
asking Parties to help with its
protection
International trade is permitted but
regulated (less restrictive than
Appendix II)
147 animal species and
119 plant species
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Species in trade
Not all listed species appear in trade
Of the 34,782 listed species, some 3,680 animal
species and 9,577 plant species have appeared in
trade during 2004-2008
Of these, 11,076 species appeared in 100 or
fewer shipments worldwide during this period
Overall, 157 animal species and 1,878 plant
species accounted for 90% of CITES transactions
during this period
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CITES Appendices
The Appendices require careful interpretation
Species listings can be annotated to specify:
the inclusion or exclusion of designated geographically
separate populations, subspecies, species, groups of
species, or higher taxa, which may include export quotas;
and
the types of specimens or export quotas
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Parts and derivatives
Parts and derivatives are always included for species
in Appendix I, and for animal species in Appendix II
Appendix I Appendix II Appendix III
Animal parts Always Always Included if
and derivatives included included specified
Plant parts and Always Included if Included if
derivatives included specified specified
Annotations to the listings for plants in Appendix II, and
for Appendix III species, determine which parts and
derivatives are included (The Parties have agreed that for plant
species included in Appendix II, the absence of an annotation relating to that
species indicates that all readily recognizable parts and derivatives are included)
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CITES Permits and Certificates
CITES regulates the export, re-export, import and
introduction from the sea of live and dead animals and
plants and their parts and derivatives (listed species
only) through a system of permits and certificates
These permits or certificates may only be issued if
certain conditions are met and which must be
presented when leaving or entering a country
For Appendix I and II species, the most important
conditions are legal acquisition and that international
trade must not be detrimental to their survival in the
wild
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Collaboration and cooperation
Collaboration and cooperation at the national level
are essential for CITES implementation
CITES Authorities
Resource sectors
Customs
Police
Judiciary
Affected stakeholders, including the private sector
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How CITES works
Similar
Similar trade authorities Similar
requirements
procedures
COMMON
PROCEDURAL
MECHANISMS
Similar rules
Similar
and
documents
regulations
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CITES Structure
Conference of the Parties
Standing Animals
Committee Committee
Plants
Committee
Secretariat
FAO / IGOs
UNEP NGOs
private sector
etc.
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CITES Structure
Conference of the Permanent
Parties Committees
Secretariat
Recommendations Guidance
Other MEAs
Scientific Management UNEP-WCMC
Authority Authority WCO
ICPO-Interpol
ITTO, FAO
Officers in charge IUCN
Other IGOs
of implementing NGOs
CITES Private sector
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Trade with non-Parties
Where export or re-export is to, or import is from, a
non-Party, comparable documentation issued by the
competent authorities which substantially conforms
with CITES requirements for permits and certificates
may be accepted
Parties accept documentation from States not party
to the Convention only if the details of the competent
authorities and scientific institutions of such States
are included in the online CITES Directory
This also applies to specimens in transit destined for
or coming from non-Parties
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Summary
CITES is an international agreement between
governments aimed at ensuring that no species of
wild fauna or flora is unsustainably exploited for
international trade
The Convention establishes the international legal
framework and common procedural mechanisms for
an effective regulation of international trade in
Appendix-II and -III species, and for the strictest
control of international trade in Appendix-I species
Inter-agency and inter-sector collaboration is essential
for the effective implementation of CITES
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Summary
CITES regulates international trade in wild fauna and
flora listed in its Appendices on the basis of a system
of permits and certificates which are issued when
certain conditions are met, and which must be
presented when leaving and entering a country
For Appendix-II and III species, international trade is
permitted but regulated, and for Appendix-I species,
international (commercial) trade in wild-taken
specimens is generally prohibited
The Conference of the Parties is the ultimate decision-
making body in CITES
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Trade should be legal, sustainable
and traceable
Legal trade can be beneficial for conservation
of wild species, and for livelihoods
Illegal trade can pose a serious risk to the
conservation of wild species
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CITES Secretariat
Geneva
[Link]