Dubai's Emirates joins animal welfare charity to combat trafficking of donkey skin

Six million donkeys are killed for their skins each year, the majority in Africa. These skins are then exported worldwide, by ship and by air, before being used to make traditional medicine and remedies, according to The Donkey Sanctuary’s latest figures.

Dubai's Emirates airline joined forces with International animal welfare charity The Donkey Sanctuary to highlight the risks posed by the transportation of donkey skins in air cargo.

The Donkey Sanctuary and Emirates have co-created the Aviation Risk and Threat Assessment operational guide to highlight the risks posed by the donkey skin trade and its association with serious and organised criminal activity.

Significant evidence exposed the link between the movement of donkey skins with other illegal wildlife trafficking and organised crime. The unregulated and unhygienic skin trade also seriously threatens global biosecurity.

Emirates has already implemented a ban on the carriage of donkey hides. In February this year, African Heads of State endorsed a continent-wide moratorium on the slaughter of donkeys for their skins at the 37th African Union (AU) Summit. Within days of the AU decision, Emirates extended its zero-tolerance policy on the carriage of banned species, hunting trophies and other associated products, to include donkey hides and parts.

Already a leader in efforts to combat the illegal wildlife trade, the airline has established stringent protocols, including screening, spot checks during transit, in-depth document verification, and confirming the authenticity of permits, in addition to providing education and training for its employees across cargo and passenger operations to identify and report smuggled wildlife.

The co-created factsheet will provide the wider aviation industry with critical knowledge in the fight against the donkey skin trade. The operational guidelines explain the biosecurity risk of smuggling inadequately processed donkey skins alongside legitimate cargo such as leather or textiles, for example. It also highlights concealment methods and crime convergence, where networks involved in the donkey skin trade may also be linked to organised crime such as wildlife and drug trafficking.

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