The survey indicates likelihood of people's support for closing illegal and unregulated markets selling wildlife in their country (Photo courtesy of WWF) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) -There is strong support among the Vietnamese public for addressing the rootcauses of COVID-19 and potential future novel zoonotic disease outbreakscaused by illegal wildlife hunting, trade and consumption, a World Wide Fundfor Nature (WWF) survey found.
About 90 percent of 1,000Vietnamese people who responded to the survey last month said they werevery likely or likely to support efforts by governments and relevantministries to close all illegal and unregulated markets and restaurants thatsell wildlife.
While questions remain aboutthe exact origins of COVID-19, the World Health Organisation has confirmed itis a zoonotic disease, meaning it jumped from wildlife to humans.
Illegal wildlifemarkets and restaurants are considered potential sources of diseasetransmission from wildlife to people.
A total of 15 percent ofrespondents in Vietnam said they or someone they knew had purchased wildlifefor consumption in the last 12 months, 73 percent believed closing illegaland unregulated wildlife markets would help prevent similar pandemics and72 percent believed closing illegal and unregulated restaurantsselling wildlife would also help.
More than 80 percent ofrespondents said they would not be purchasing wildlife from such outletsin the future.
According to the WWF, continuedawareness-raising on the risks to reduce consumer demand and policyand enforcement to reduce availability are required to remove the risk offuture outbreaks and ensure that wildlife is protected.
“It is time to connect the dots between wildlife trade, environmentaldegradation and risks to human health. Taking action now for humans, as well asthe many wildlife species threatened by consumption and trade, is crucial forall of our survival,” said Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWFInternational.
On March 6, Prime MinisterNguyen Xuan Phuc sent a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment to draft an urgent directive to ban illegal wildlife trade andconsumption.
“Now more than ever, we feel anurgent sense of responsibility to stop future zoonotic transmissions. WWFstands ready to work with the Government of Vietnam and the relevant ministriesto translate the directive into actions and put an end to the consumption andtrade in wildlife,” said Dr Van Ngoc Thinh, Country Director of WWF-Vietnam.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported that the current COVID-19pandemic, along with at least 61 percent of all human pathogens, arezoonotic in origin. Other recent epidemics, including SARS, MERS and Ebola,have also all been traced back to viruses that spread from animals to people.
The illegal wildlife trade is the second-largest direct threat tobiodiversity globally, after habitat destruction. Populations of vertebrate species onearth declined by an average 60 percent since 1970.
The new WWF survey wasconducted in March among 5,000 participants from Hong Kong (China), Japan,Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. It was the first survey of public opinion aboutthe connection between COVID-19 and wildlife trade undertaken across Asia.
The survey found that 93 percent ofrespondents in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong supported action by theirgovernments to eliminate illegal and unregulated markets./.
About 90 percent of 1,000Vietnamese people who responded to the survey last month said they werevery likely or likely to support efforts by governments and relevantministries to close all illegal and unregulated markets and restaurants thatsell wildlife.
While questions remain aboutthe exact origins of COVID-19, the World Health Organisation has confirmed itis a zoonotic disease, meaning it jumped from wildlife to humans.
Illegal wildlifemarkets and restaurants are considered potential sources of diseasetransmission from wildlife to people.
A total of 15 percent ofrespondents in Vietnam said they or someone they knew had purchased wildlifefor consumption in the last 12 months, 73 percent believed closing illegaland unregulated wildlife markets would help prevent similar pandemics and72 percent believed closing illegal and unregulated restaurantsselling wildlife would also help.
More than 80 percent ofrespondents said they would not be purchasing wildlife from such outletsin the future.
According to the WWF, continuedawareness-raising on the risks to reduce consumer demand and policyand enforcement to reduce availability are required to remove the risk offuture outbreaks and ensure that wildlife is protected.
“It is time to connect the dots between wildlife trade, environmentaldegradation and risks to human health. Taking action now for humans, as well asthe many wildlife species threatened by consumption and trade, is crucial forall of our survival,” said Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWFInternational.
On March 6, Prime MinisterNguyen Xuan Phuc sent a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment to draft an urgent directive to ban illegal wildlife trade andconsumption.
“Now more than ever, we feel anurgent sense of responsibility to stop future zoonotic transmissions. WWFstands ready to work with the Government of Vietnam and the relevant ministriesto translate the directive into actions and put an end to the consumption andtrade in wildlife,” said Dr Van Ngoc Thinh, Country Director of WWF-Vietnam.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported that the current COVID-19pandemic, along with at least 61 percent of all human pathogens, arezoonotic in origin. Other recent epidemics, including SARS, MERS and Ebola,have also all been traced back to viruses that spread from animals to people.
The illegal wildlife trade is the second-largest direct threat tobiodiversity globally, after habitat destruction. Populations of vertebrate species onearth declined by an average 60 percent since 1970.
The new WWF survey wasconducted in March among 5,000 participants from Hong Kong (China), Japan,Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. It was the first survey of public opinion aboutthe connection between COVID-19 and wildlife trade undertaken across Asia.
The survey found that 93 percent ofrespondents in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong supported action by theirgovernments to eliminate illegal and unregulated markets./.
VNA
