GENEVA, Switzerland – Vietnam has faced international scrutiny for its ongoing challenges in combating rhino horn trafficking at the 78th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), held in Geneva.
Despite being a signatory to CITES, Vietnam remains a key hub in the illegal trade, serving as a source, transit point, and destination for rhino horns.
The meeting started on Monday and will end Saturday.
In its November 2023 report to the CITES Secretariat, Vietnam detailed 15 rhino horn seizure cases between 2022 and October 2023. Notably, seven of these cases identified Angola as the country of origin, while five did not specify any origin. The report also stated that there were no seizures of rhino horns originating from South Africa, which meant no sample exchanges occurred with South African authorities.
However, the CITES Secretariat expressed concerns over incomplete information. In a document dated January 16, 2025, the Secretariat noted, “The majority of rhinoceros horns found in illegal trade originate from South Africa because it has the largest rhinoceros population in the world,” adding that criminal networks often smuggle these horns through other African nations to avoid detection.
The Secretariat has “encouraged” Vietnam to share DNA samples from its seizures with the South African Rhino DNA Indexing System (RhODIS), a key forensic database used to track poaching hotspots and identify trafficking patterns. However, compliance remains inconsistent.
“Ideally, everyone should be sharing samples of seized rhino horn with South Africa,” said Jo Shaw from the NGO Save the Rhino. Yet, Taylor Tench, a senior policy analyst at the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), noted, “Vietnam has shared rhino horn samples with South Africa a few times in recent years, but other countries have never done so.”
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Despite these criticisms, Vietnam has made some efforts. On June 1, 2021, its CITES Management Authority and the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources handed over 56 rhino horn DNA samples to the South African Embassy in Hanoi. “This initiative shows the close cooperation between Việt Nam and South Africa in fighting illegal wildlife trafficking,” said Phạm Văn Điển, deputy head of the Vietnam Administration of Forestry.
However, the CITES Secretariat remains concerned about Vietnam’s overall progress. The country has been repeatedly warned to strengthen enforcement, improve legal frameworks, and increase transparency in its wildlife crime investigations. At the last CITES Conference of the Parties in 2022, Vietnam was specifically urged to take stronger action.
As global scrutiny mounts, Vietnam faces growing pressure to step up its fight against rhino horn trafficking. The discussions at this CITES Standing Committee meeting could determine the next steps—including possible sanctions—if meaningful progress is not demonstrated.
