Wildlife Weekly

In this episode, Oiza speaks to Chinedu Mogbo and his mission to save endangered animals in Nigeria. Widespread hunting in Nigeria has seen the country's animal population continue to fall. With no effective laws against animal abuse and trade, Chinedu Mogbo is trying to combat it by setting up a sanctuary for animals.

Bushmeat species are ideal hosts for deadly diseases. For example, great apes are as adversely affected by the Ebola virus as humans. Ebola can be transmitted to humans from contact with contaminated meat and eating bushmeat is believed to be a cause of Ebola outbreaks in humans. With bushmeat becoming increasingly commercialized, this problem could quickly affect any of us. It is a huge possibility that this meat will be accompanied by zoonotic diseases. 

In this episode, Oiza had a chat with Dr Mark Ufua, a vetenarian who explained how wild animals are carriers of zoonotic diseases and introduce another outbreak if they are not kept in the wild.

The West African Manatee is listed as ‘Vulnerable’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Incidental capture in nets, and hunting for meat, skin, bones and oil occurs throughout most of its range, including in coastal towns and villages in Nigeria. 

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, there are an estimated 10,000 manatees along the coast of West Africa, but its population is rapidly declining. Hunting manatees is illegal in Nigeria yet endangered mammals remain targeted, sought after for its meat, oil and organs, used in traditional medicine. In this spoke we spoke to Dr. Bolaji Dunsin, a Nigerian scientist, who is saving African manatees by working with fishermen at Lekki Lagoon.

What is the bushmeat crisis and why should we care? In this episode we sought to help the audience understand how the growing appeal of bushmeat is destroying wildlife and why this needs to stop, at least for endangered species. This episode featured interviews from bushmeat markets in Lagos, urban consumers on factors that influence their preference for bushmeat and views from experts responding to consumers’ perceptions and offering wider context on why it is necessary to tackle this crisis.

As the impacts of the commercial bushmeat trade and wildlife trafficking increase with each passing year, it is important for young people to join the movement for positive change. By leading the discussion around bushmeat trade, illegal wildlife trafficking and ongoing conservation efforts , young people will become agents of change and spread awareness while also motivating others to take action. This episode will “listen” to young voices and encourage youth around the world to rally together to address ongoing major threats to wildlife, including illicit trafficking, over-exploitation and habitat loss.

Call to action: Spread the word, especially to children and youth. They are the future leaders of wildlife conservation and they deserve a future where we humans live in harmony with wildlife that share the planet with us.

This week on Wildlife Weekly, Oiza introduced Season II of Wildlife Weekly alongside an interview with WildAid's Nigeria representative Festus Iyorah.

Festus spoke on reasons for the show and why young people need to listen to the show and also offered listeners an idea of the episodes they will be listening to in the course of the season.

This Episode from season 1 focuses on Pangolins; The world's most trafficked animal. It also features an interview with Dr. Ofua Mark wildlife veterinarian and pangolin expert, owner SaintMarks Animal Rescue Foundation.

This programme is brought to you through a partnership between WildAid and Yabatech Radio 89.3FM Lagos.