Illegal wildlife trade in NepalCEFR A2
14 Dec 2025
Adapted from Sonia Awale, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Vickey Goh, Unsplash
Illegal wildlife trade is a major global business, estimated at USD 20 billion a year in 2023. Much trafficked wildlife is smuggled to China and Southeast Asia for traditional medicine or food. Nepal is both a source country and a transit route for this trade.
Nepal has strict laws to protect wildlife, but many arrests focus on low-level actors. Indigenous and poor people who carry, transport or sell wildlife are often caught and punished, while higher-level traffickers are rarely arrested. Experts say reform, education and livelihood support are needed to help communities and reduce crime.
Difficult words
- smuggle — move goods secretly to another countrysmuggled
- trafficker — person who sells things illegally across borderstraffickers
- transit route — path where goods travel through a country
- indigenous — people native to a particular region or land
- livelihood — work and income that support a person's life
- reform — change in laws or systems to improve things
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Discussion questions
- Why might poor people carry or sell wildlife?
- How could education help reduce wildlife crime in communities?
- What kinds of livelihood support could help people avoid wildlife trade?
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