An endangered species is species (a population) of animals, plants or other organisation that is in danger of becoming extinct. This could happen because there few of that animal left, its predators have grown in number, or the climate that it lives in is changing, or the places it lives in have been destroyed.

Hunting for ivory is the main reason that elephants and rhinos have been so heavily hunted. Elephant ivory has been used in huge amount to make billiards balls, piano keys, identification chops and many other items for human enjoyment. Rhinos are majestic, prehistoric creatures that are targeted for their horn, which are falsely seen as holding medical value in Asia. Globally, there are just 29,000 rhinos left in wild today compared to 500,000 at the beginning of the 20^th century. Malawi itself was badly hit by the wave of illegal poaching that devastated rhino population all over central, eastern and southern Africa between the late 1960s and mid-1990s, so much so that rhinos officially went extinct in Malawi in 1992. Kasungu National Park in Malawi used to have rhinos, but they went extinct in the 1970s due to poaching.

Elephants are highly valuable to both people and places. They are known for the vital role they play in the ecology of landscape, as the ?gardeners of the forests and savannahs? they also attract tourist and therefore income from a multi-billion dollar industry which Malawi can?t afford to lose out on. Currently, Malawi has a population of elephants which is less than 2,000 elephants and the number is continuously declining.

Kasungu Nation Park is the home to elephant populations in Malawi, though number are in severe decline. Just 30 years ago 2,000 elephants could be found here, but today just 48 remain. On average, 66 elephants were killed per year, in just this park! Heavy poaching is to blame, and if it continues elephants could be locally extinct in just one year.

The international trade in ivory was banned in 1989 by the convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES), to which Malawi is a signatory. Malawi?s elephant population (together with all African elephant population except South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe which are listed as Appendix 11) is listed on Appendix 1 of CITES, which prevents all international trade. Therefore it would be illegal to sell Malawi?s ivory on international Market, to do so would break international law and the repercussions on any country doing so would be catastrophic.

Below are images conveying on how Malawi is curbing poaching and ivory trade.

Links: https://simple.m.wikipedia.org/Endangered_species

           www.eleaid.com/elephant-information/elephant-tusks/

           www.lilogwewildlife.org/rationale-destruction-malawis-ivory-stockpile 

           www.lilongwewidlife.org