The UK Government has announced awards to CAWT partners to support their work on conservation of African Elephants © Martin Harvey / WWF-Canon February 2012—The UK Government has awarded £1.3 million to species conservation projects around the world. Four of the 13 projects benefitting from funds secured through the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are run by CAWT partners.

They include awards of £50,000 each for two IUCN specialists groups—those dealing with African Elephants and African Rhinos. The money will support efforts to promote conservation of these species and to tackle poaching and illegal trade in their products.

The Secretariat of CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) has received two awards too, one of £40,000 to strengthen implementation of CITES legislation through the International Consortium for Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) and the second, of £14,000, to contribute towards verification missions conducted as part of the action plan to tackle illegal ivory trade.