TUSKS Summary
Authorities in Togo seized many containers of elephant tusks. They were disguised as nuts and timber but the ivory was recovered. "The international trade in ivory has been banned but conservationists say African elephants are being poached at an alarming rate, especially in Central Africa.
The United Nations warned last year that the ivory trade had become an important source of funding for armed groups and was a growing security concern, especially in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad and Gabon." The illegal ivory trade it decimating the elephant population. In Togo there are only 115 elephants. It is important to be aware of this illicit trade and be aware of the very permanent fate people are spelling out for elephant populations.