For strong wildlife laws to be effective, they must be followed up with robust enforcement. In 2018, we brought together investigators, prosecutors, judicial officers, and customs officers to streamline the detection, investigation, and adjudication of wildlife crimes. The workshops helped trainees understand the country’s wildlife laws, overcome weaknesses in investigations and prosecutions, establish interagency collaborative frameworks, and ensure proper case management.

We work with Botswana’s Department of Wildlife and National Parks to support a canine detection-dog unit based in Gaborone. The unit deploys dog-and-handler teams to strategic airports, roads, and border crossings to stop the trafficking of illegal wildlife products through Botswana. In 2022, we equipped the team with two new Land Cruisers for patrolling.