Work

Using global trade data to identify priorities for agarwood conservation and trade management

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Global agarwood trade is a multibillion-dollar business, but little is known about its sustainability or conservation implications. We studied the trade using data in CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) and customs records from 2010 to 2020. We find that the trade is based mainly on endangered species sourced from the wild, with most, though not all, species that are threatened by this trade being listed in CITES. Social network analysis identified Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia as key nodes of a global agarwood trade network. Through comparisons of trade data for five agarwood trade centers, we find that CITES and customs records are consistent for Hong Kong, India, Singapore and Thailand, but that large volumes of agarwood trade from Indonesia to Africa were undocumented in CITES. We recommend increased conservation efforts to protect threatened agarwood species and interventions to address key players in the trade.

Source: Global Ecology and Conservation

DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03560

Authors: Kwok-wai Lai, Huarong Zhang, Feng Yang, Stephan W. Gale

Institution: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden

Language: English

Topic: Wildlife Conservation and Criminology Analyses

Subfield: Nature and Landscape Conservation

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Life on land

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,980