Closing the Net on Wildlife Trafficking: Strengthening Mail and Online Defences in the Philippines
Wildlife traffickers in the Philippines exploit postal, courier, and online platforms to move tarantulas, reptiles, agarwood, and more.
75+ government agency, and courier representatives trained in Manila to boost detection and response.
Courier firms and PHLPost commit to stronger protocols, inspired by regional successes like Malaysia.
Officers received hands-on training to investigate illegal wildlife trade on Facebook.
Tarantulas, scorpions, reptiles, agarwood — and much more. Across the Philippines, traffickers are exploiting postal networks and online platforms to smuggle wildlife with alarming speed and anonymity.
Two new workshops brought government agencies, law enforcement, and private sector partners together to help shut these weak links and strengthen the country’s defences against wildlife crime.
On 16 September 2025, 42 representatives from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Bureau of Customs (BOC), Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), PHLPost, along with courier companies UPS, JRS Express, and the Philippine Express and Parcel Association of Movers and Providers (PEMAP), convened in Manila for the ‘Roundtable Workshop to Address Wildlife Trafficking in the Postal and Courier Sector in the Philippines’.
“Wildlife traffickers are exploiting postal and courier systems to move illegal species with speed and anonymity. Today’s dialogue is an important milestone in ensuring that these channels do not become weak links in our fight against wildlife crime,”
Jose Manuel Enverga, Acting Manager, PHLPost.
Stakeholders identified opportunities for practical interventions centred around policies, training, coordination and infrastructure that will guide next steps to enhance vigilance at mail hubs nationwide. They also drew inspiration from Malaysia’s recent success in addressing wildlife trafficking through its postal system.
Representatives from the courier industry echoed the importance of shared responsibility.
This initiative is a massive step forward in ensuring better protocols in protecting wildlife and we see this collaboration as an opportunity to strengthen our vigilance at every step of the delivery chain”
Atty. Ruel Mari, Legal Head, JRS Business Corporation and PEMAP Corporate Secretary.
Linked to the widespread use of postal and courier services in online illegal wildlife trade, a targeted workshop on wildlife cybercrime was held on 18 September 2025 in Quezon City for DENR and the Philippine National Police-Maritime Group (PNP-MG) officers.
The 33 participants received hands-on training on monitoring and investigating illegal online activity, focusing on Facebook, the dominant platform for wildlife trafficking in the Philippines.
Officers were from areas repeatedly highlighted in TRAFFIC monitoring reports as active zones for online wildlife trade: Region 3 (Central Luzon), Region 4A (CALABARZON), Region 4B (MIMAROPA), and the National Capital Region (NCR).
A recent case underscored the urgency of this work. In April 2025, a notorious online trader was arrested following years of monitoring and intelligence shared by TRAFFIC. He now faces charges under Republic Act No. 9147.
This training will equip our law enforcement officers with the knowledge and tools needed to keep pace with the evolving criminal trends”
said Atty. Norlito A. Eneran, Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs and Enforcement, DENR.
By strengthening both mail security and online monitoring, the Philippines is sending a clear signal: every parcel and every post matters in the fight against wildlife crime.
Notes:
These trainings were conducted under the project Taking Charge: Strengthening Criminal Justice Response to Wildlife Crime in the Philippines generously funded by the United States Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). The opinions, finds and conclusions stated herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of State.
