Assistance of Specially Trained Staff in Handling Cases Related to Wildlife Act and Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act

Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang asked the Minister for National Development in each year for the past five years, how many instances of enforcement under the Wildlife Act and Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act, respectively, are conducted with enforcement officers being accompanied or assisted by non-enforcement officers with the necessary training, qualifications or experience to assist in the specialised handling of animal species.

Mr Desmond Lee: The National Parks Board (NParks) requires professionals who handle animals involved in enforcement cases under the Wildlife Act and the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act to be certified through NParks’ Animal Management Certification Programme to ensure that they have the necessary expertise. This includes non-enforcement officers, such as employees of animal management companies, assisting in the specialised handling of animal species. The annual breakdown of the involvement of such non-enforcement officers for the past five years is in Table 1 below.