Imagine a cargo ship slowly docking at port. Among its seemingly ordinary containers may lie the remains of endangered species, waiting to be transported to distant markets. The challenge? Identifying these illegal wildlife products within mountains of legitimate cargo.
The World Customs Organization's (WCO) INAMA project was created to solve this exact problem. Focused on strengthening customs enforcement against illegal wildlife trade (IWT), particularly for species protected under CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species), the project received funding from Germany's GIZ to conduct missions in Malawi during May 2019 and February 2020.
Diagnostic Mission: Assessing Risk Management Capabilities
In May 2019, INAMA experts arrived in Malawi to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the Malawi Revenue Authority's (MRA) risk management systems for combating wildlife trafficking. The assessment focused on three key objectives:
- Comprehensive evaluation: Analyzing existing risk management frameworks including organizational structure, staffing, equipment, and information-sharing mechanisms.
- Identifying weaknesses: Pinpointing vulnerabilities in risk identification, assessment, and response processes.
- Recommendations: Developing customized improvement plans addressing workflow optimization, skills enhancement, and interagency cooperation.
Through in-depth interviews, field observations, and data analysis, the team gained clear understanding of MRA's capabilities, laying groundwork for subsequent interventions.
Implementation Phase: Hands-On Training
The February 2020 follow-up mission shifted focus to practical capacity building through:
- Joint training: Workshops combining international best practices with fundamental risk management concepts.
- Practical exercises: Guided development of risk indicators for wildlife trafficking - analyzing high-risk origin countries, preferred smuggling methods, and common commodity misdeclarations.
- Response strategies: Creating tiered inspection protocols prioritizing high-risk shipments while strengthening intelligence collection and interagency operations.
Beyond technical skills, the training cultivated critical risk awareness and proactive enforcement mindsets among MRA officers.
Risk Indicators: The Frontline Detection System
Central to the training were risk indicators - behavioral patterns and shipment characteristics signaling potential illegal activity. The project helped develop two categories:
- General indicators: Applicable across wildlife trafficking cases, including shipments from specific regions, unusual transportation methods, or underdeclared values.
- Species-specific indicators: Tailored to commodities like ivory, rhino horn, or pangolin scales, examining packaging methods, labeling details, and certification documents.
Regular updates to these indicators enable more precise targeting of illicit wildlife products.
Sustainable Capacity Building
The project emphasized long-term institutional development through:
- Establishing dedicated risk management units
- Enhancing information-sharing between domestic agencies and international partners
- Implementing ongoing professional development programs
Global Cooperation Against Wildlife Crime
Recognizing wildlife trafficking as a transnational challenge, INAMA facilitated a March 2020 regional workshop in Hanoi gathering officials from Malawi, Nigeria, and Vietnam to exchange risk indicator methodologies and collaborative enforcement strategies.
The Malawi implementation demonstrates how diagnostic assessment, practical training, and institutional strengthening can build effective defenses against wildlife trafficking. As INAMA expands globally, such approaches offer replicable models for protecting biodiversity worldwide.