The 20th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP20) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) concluded in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. 

About CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species)

• CITES also known as the Washington Convention is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals.
• It was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
• The convention was opened for signature in 1973 and CITES entered into force on 1 July 1975.
• CITES is legally binding on state parties to the convention, which are obliged to adopt their own domestic legislation to implement its goals.
• Appendix: The species covered by CITES are listed in three Appendices according to the degree of protection they need.
  • Appendix I includes species threatened with extinction. Trade in specimens of these species is permitted only in exceptional circumstances.
  • Appendix II: It includes species not necessarily threatened with extinction but for which trade must be controlled to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival.
  • Appendix III: It contains species protected in at least one country that has asked other CITES Parties for assistance in controlling the trade.
• Secretariat: The CITES Secretariat is administered by UNEP and is located at Geneva, Switzerland.
• Member Parties: Currently there are 185 Parties of CITES.
  • India ratified the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1976, becoming an active party to the treaty.

CITES Convention of Parties CoP

• Decision-making body: The COP is the supreme decision-making authority of the CITES, held every 2–3 years.
• Amends Appendices: CoP reviews the status of species and decides on uplisting, downlisting, or delisting species in Appendix I, II, III.
• Policy & Compliance Review: COP sets global policies on wildlife trade, adopts resolutions, evaluates implementation by member states, and strengthens enforcement measures against illegal wildlife trade.

Key Outcomes of CoP20

• Hosted by Uzbekistan in Samarkand. It is the first CoP in Central Asia.
• CoP20 marked the 50th anniversary of CITES.
• Delegates reviewed 50 proposals and added 77 species to the CITES appendices.
• Major Uplistings: Several species received stronger protections (Appendix I).
  • These are oceanic whitetip shark, whale shark, and all manta and devil ray species. 
  • Ecuador led successful efforts to uplist Galápagos land and marine iguanas. 
  • Cameroon and Ethiopia also secured Appendix I listings for the Home’s hinge-back tortoise and Bale and Ethiopian mountain adders, respectively.
• Successful Downlistings: Some species were moved to less restrictive categories due to documented recovery. 
  • Mexico downlisted the Guadalupe fur seal and Parlatore’s podocarp. 
  • Kazakhstan had the saiga antelope removed from Appendix II, and 
  • South Africa achieved the same for the bontebok antelope.
• India’s Role : India successfully opposed an EU proposal to list guggul, arguing for more population data. 

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