The World Wildlife Fund released a statement on Tuesday asking countries in East and Southeast Asia to enforce existing bans on wildlife trade, in light of the viral COVID-19 outbreak which has now reached around 60 countries.
The statement, from the WWF Asia Pacific office, welcomed China’s decision to ban the consumption of wildlife and to end the unregulated sale of this meat. China had initially instituted a partial ban in January, which was extended to a complete ban in consumption and trade of all wildlife.
“We call on the relevant Ministries responsible for wildlife protection and public health to combine their capacity and resources to increase market inspections, reach out to the public, and stop the sale and consumption of wild meat and other wildlife products,” the statement reads.
