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African Refugees Spurring Bush-Meat Trade

Authors:

Eliza Barclay for National Geographic News

Document Type:

Media

Citation:

Barclay, Eliza. 2008. African Refugees Spurring Bush-Meat Trade. National Geographic, January 22.

Year Published:

2008

Type Work:

Magazine Article

Availability:

on-line

Location of Project:

Tanzania

Language:

english

Url:

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/01/080122-refugees-bushmeat.html

Bushmeat Asian Type:

Bushmeat

Keywords:

Africa, refugee, refugees, bushmeat tread, wild meat trade, Tanzania, TRAFFIC, chimpanzee, wildlife, tourism

Abstract:

A booming illegal trade in wild animal meat inside refugee camps in Tanzania is putting wildlife populations and rural communities at risk, according to a new report. The demand is driven partly by the absence of meat in rations provided by aid agencies, which some experts say represents a failure of relief organizations to meet the basic needs of their charges. Many East African refugees are accustomed to regular consumption of meat as a source of protein, according to the report issued by TRAFFIC, the international wildlife-trade monitoring network. "When the refugees are kept in camps without meat protein they tend to fend for themselves" by poaching local wildlife, said report lead author George Jambiya, of the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. Many East African refugees are accustomed to regular consumption of meat as a source of protein, according to the report issued by TRAFFIC, the international wildlife-trade monitoring network. (...)