The Secretariat is disappointed at the generally low number of responses that have been received to its request for information, especially since media reports indicate incidents of poaching in a number of elephant range States. Full participation in the monitoring and reporting systems is essential if an accurate overview of poaching is to be obtained. Parties should use this form to submit information to the Secretariat on individual cases of illegal hunting. This is primarily an operational form, designed to prompt the gathering of information that may aid in co-ordinating efforts against illegal hunting. It is acknowledged that some parts of the form seek information that may be regarded as sensitive and confidential.
Parties are of course free to choose how fully they complete each part of the form.
On receipt of completed forms, the Secretariat's Enforcement Assistance Unit will collate the information received and provide it to appropriate bodies, such as ICPO-Interpol and the World Customs Organization, with a view to aiding Parties in their actions to combat illegal hunting. The form was designed for the collection of data on an annual basis. States have submitted a National reporting form. Parties are again encouraged to submit this information, as soon as possible, and are requested to include data for the period June 1998 - November 1999. The Secretariat emphasizes that each of the reporting forms is an important element in its commitment to monitoring poaching and acquiring meaningful data.