Wildlife Traffickers Now Targeted with Tough Penalties

Nigeria has passed one of West Africa’s strongest wildlife protection laws, introducing prison sentences of up to 10 years and multimillion-naira fines for trafficking ivory, pangolin scales and other endangered species products.

“This new bill addresses long-existing gaps in our legal framework,” said Terseer Ugbor, sponsor of the legislation and deputy chairman of the House Committee on Environment.

The law expands the list of protected species, aligns Nigeria with global conservation treaties and allows courts to freeze assets linked to wildlife crimes. Nigeria has been a major trafficking hub, with 3.7 tonnes of pangolin scales seized in Lagos this year alone, yet only 12 convictions were recorded between 2022 and 2024. Conservation experts say enforcement, training and agency coordination will determine whether the law becomes a turning point for a country linked to more than one million trafficked pangolins in a decade.