Meeting between SAWEN and SlaWEN

A joint meeting was organized between SAWEN and SriLanka Wildlife Enforcement Network (SlaWEN) under the collaboration with Department of Wildlife Conservation and Environmental Foundation Limited, Sri Lanka on 31 July 2025. The meeting was of hybrid nature, as representatives and focal person from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka participated in person, while India joined virtually.

The focal persons and representatives from SAWEN member countries presented on the legal and institutional systems for biodiversity conservation in their respective countries; including national laws, enforcement agencies, coordination mechanisms, and policy measures guiding wildlife protection and shared best practices in transboundary wildlife crime investigation.

Discussions centered around protecting shared migratory species, strengthening information-sharing mechanisms, conducting regional risk assessments. SAWEN member countries showed strong interest in working together to protect the species of South Asia and to jointly work in preventing illegal wildlife trade.