Introduction

Generally, animal trafficking includes the illegal stealing, smuggling, transportation and distribution of the animals and the products and derivatives obtained from them for commercial purposes for human use (Subha, 2013). Countries in Europe, the United States and Asia named as most animals’ illegal smuggling activities for pets, or for their skins and furs. The issue of animal trafficking had attracted attention of a lot of major NGOs, United Nation and Interpol rank animal trafficking as third and second world’s largest illicit activity respectively (Save Ecuador’s Animals: animal trafficking).

As per an estimate made by the Interpol, it has been predicted that annually 10–20 billion US dollars is generated from such illegal activities. Well-organized criminal groups have turned environmental exploitation into a professional business, with high revenues encouraging the poaching of endangered and protected species in national parks (Subha, 2013). Every year, thousands of cases of poaching are reported by authorities in Africa and Asia. Based on the reliable resource, United Nation Office on Drugs and Crime, 450 elephants were killed, for their ivory, in early 2012 in Bouba Ndjida National Park in northern Cameroon. Between 1989 and 2009, estimated 2.3 tons of ivory were seized and it is worth USD $2 million apiece at the wholesale level (UNODC, 2014).

Concern with this situation, this paper will discuss the effects of animal trafficking to the economy of that particular country internationally. Mainly there are three major points, which are a direct effect to economic, economic effect through ecotourism development of the country and economic effect through global health.

Discussion

Global trade in illegal wildlife is a potentially huge illegal economy, estimated to be worth billions of dollars each year. The most lucrative illegal wildlife commodities are rhino horn, elephant ivory, sturgeon caviar, and so-called “bush meat.”

Wildlife smuggling may pose at transnational security threat as well as an environmental one. Numerous sources indicate that some organized criminal syndicates, insurgent groups, and foreign military units may be involved in various aspects of international wildlife trafficking.