Political Economy Assessment: Regional Cooperation in Counter Wildlife Trafficking in Southeast Asia - Summary

The main research questions of this PEA are below:

• What evidence exists of improvements in regional cooperation on CWT and illegal wildlife trade (IWT)?
• What windows of opportunities and challenges did coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and/or the fear of other zoonotic transmitted diseases create to advance harmonized efforts to CWT?
• Has political will changed since 2017?

The PEA includes consideration of the relationship between regional drivers of biodiversity loss such as poorly planned infrastructure, unsustainable commercial agriculture, and rapidly changing land use patterns that create not only pressure on landscapes and species but also on the communities who rely on these resources for their livelihoods. This summary includes the report's high-level findings and recommendations.

RDW conducted three separate but interrelated assessments to aid the project in planning future program directions and activities. This PEA, the Civil Society and Social Inclusion Assessment, and the One Health Landscape Assessment aim to provide insight into emerging opportunities to build upon work undertaken in biodiversity conservation in the region, including more than a decade of work to combat wildlife trafficking.