Wildlife trade has become common in both Somalia and Somaliland. in particular, tortoise hunting which has been taking place first in Mogadishu since October last year and started in Somaliland sometime in January this year. Somalia stated that it is warning against the illegal trade and hunting of tortoises. The Director General of the Ministry of Environment Mr. Abdiaziz said that tortoises dwelling in our bushes are some of the rare animals spared from the ravages of human activities and they should be protected against the illegal sales.

Mohamed Hussein Yahow is one of the well-known tortoise dealers in Mogadishu who left his job to sell the tortoise living in Somalia illegally. He said, explaining how this takes place, ?When we started selling and hunting tortoises, some people think this is impossible while others believed it. I am telling everyone that this is a true story and the prices of the tortoise depend on its size.? However, selling tortoise has never been heard since Somalia started to pay attention to environmental and wildlife protection.

In addition, on 13^th February, the Minister of Environment and Rural Development Hon. Shukri Ismail Baandare stated that her ministry arrested nine people accused selling tortoise to foreigners where six tortoises were released from captivity. Many times, Somaliland government has warned against selling of any type of wildlife and this marks the violation of its wildlife protection policy. Somaliland Regional court sentenced these people for three years and 3.000.000 slsh of fine.

On the other hand, there is growing loss of Somali wildlife in many parts of Somalia due to the dry seasons and prolonged drought which has been present in the country since 2011. Both state and central government agencies for environment protection highlighted that tortoise is one those wildlife that still remain in Somalia and all threats that are endangering its existence will face harsh punishment.