Prince William visits Jebel Ali Port

Britain's Prince William marked his trip to Dubai with a visit to Jebel Ali Port, where he was briefed about efforts to tackle illegal wildlife trade.

The Duke of Cambridge, who is also the founder of The Royal Foundation’s United for Wildlife, heard how partners in the region are working to end the illegal trade and also watched a demonstration of their work.

United for Wildlife is building a global network of transport and finance experts, united in a shared aim to stop criminals from exploiting their networks and end the trade.

The illegal wildlife trade is among the five most lucrative global crimes and is often run by highly organised criminal networks.

Prince William founded United for Wildlife to raise awareness of this crime and bring motivated leaders from business, law enforcement and charities together to ensure a more significant response than conservation alone.

Jebel Ali Port is owned by DP World, the Principal Partner of United for Wildlife.

During his visit, Prince William was given a tour of the facility to see the scale of operations at the Middle East’s largest port.

He was also given a live demonstration of cargo being unloaded from ships, the journey through customs, learning about how cutting-edge new technology can be deployed to identify trafficked wildlife items, and support enforcement investigations.

Prince William, the founder of The Royal Foundation’s United for Wildlife, marked his trip to Dubai with a visit to Jebel Ali Port, hearing how partners in the region are working to end the illegal wildlife trade and seeing a demonstration of their work. pic.twitter.com/jiEYxJ9RGt

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) February 10, 2022

Ahead of Prince Williams’s visit, Dubai International Airport announced it will become a signatory of The Buckingham Palace Declaration, becoming the latest member of United for Wildlife’s (UfW) Transport Taskforce and further strengthening awareness of this crime in the region.

UfW has also launched a Middle East and North Africa Chapter with new signatories from the financial services sector.

The Regional Chapter will work with UfW’s international finance and transport taskforces to share information and resources, strengthen existing partnerships and better respond to support local priorities.

It is the fifth regional chapter to be launched, following East Africa, Southern Africa, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia and Australasia.

Jebel Ali Port is owned by DP World, the Principal Partner of United for Wildlife. They have been instrumental in recognising this vision and raising awareness of action on this issue. pic.twitter.com/EouLS3yr1v

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) February 10, 2022