Advocacy

Existing wildlife laws in Sierra Leone are widely regarded as out-of-date. The punishment for killing a critically endangered western chimpanzee – National Animal of Sierra Leone – can be a fine of less than a dollar.

It is estimated that if population decline of the western chimpanzee continues at the same rate, 99% of the remaining population will be lost by 2060.

Tacugama is at the forefront of advocacy in this area. We want to ensure that the law protects chimps and other endangered species before it’s too late.

We are campaigning for a new wildlife law that provides sufficient deterrent to stop people from hunting and trading in endangered species and from keeping them as pets.

“Can you imagine if we did nothing? That’s our fear. The conservation world is such that if something is going well and we take our foot off the accelerator, we’re playing with fire.”

Aram Kazandjian, Tacugama