Nigeria’s New Wildlife Trafficking Penalties – Interactive Brief
Wildlife Crime

Nigeria to impose stricter fines, jail sentences on wildlife traffickers

Traffickers of ivory, pangolin scales, and other wildlife are set to face up to 10 years in jail and fines up to ₦12,000,000 under a new Senate‑passed bill.

📅 October 29, 2025 ⏱️ Quick interactive brief
Curled‑up pangolin with protective scales, symbolizing species targeted in illicit trade
Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons – Gregg Yan (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nigeria’s Senate approved the Endangered Species Conservation and Protection Bill, which raises penalties on trafficking of protected wildlife. According to Reuters, the bill allows fines up to ₦12,000,000 and prison terms up to 10 years. Related background on pangolin trade can be found in Karmactive’s coverage of data gaps in conservation and global pangolin trade mapping.

₦12,000,000
Maximum fine
Up to 10 years
Maximum jail term
₦100,000
Previous fine (as low as)
3 months–5 years
Previous jail range

Bill Essentials

Penalties & scope
Nigeria will impose fines of up to 12 million naira ($8,200) and jail terms of up to 10 years on traffickers of ivory, pangolin scales and other wildlife in a sweeping new bill passed by its Senate.
Enforcement tools
The Bill grants the Nigerian Customs investigators powers to track financial flows, and search and detain aircraft and vessels transporting prohibited wildlife. Judges will be allowed to fast‑track cases and seize assets.
Protection measures
The law also prohibits pollution of wildlife habitat and the eating of endangered wildlife. It aligns Nigeria with global treaties and enables extradition of offenders.
Statements

“This is a huge win for Nigeria and shows, without any doubt, that we remain committed to stamping out wildlife trafficking and protecting our unique fauna and flora,”

— Terseer Ugbor, bill sponsor. Environmental groups welcomed the move and urged swift presidential assent before a UN‑affiliated international agreement summit in Uzbekistan in November.

Conservation organizations have documented Nigeria’s role in trans‑continental trafficking routes. For broader wildlife crime context, see Karmactive’s reporting on global trafficking routes and threats to elephant populations in Africa and Asia.

Penalty Explorer

Move the slider to visualize a possible fine under the bill (₦0 to ₦12,000,000). A rough USD view is shown using the provided ₦12,000,000 ≈ $8,200 reference.

₦12,000,000
≈ $8,200

Jail sentences can reach up to 10 years.

Context locations: Abuja (National Assembly). Lagos may feature in trafficking routes via ports and airports.

The brief presented the Senate‑passed bill’s penalty limits, enforcement tools and protection measures, included quoted statements from the sponsor, and provided context links for readers.

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