China supports global campaign against illegal wildlife product trade, and will partner with African states to combat wildlife crimes, a Chinese official said here on Friday.

"The Chinese government will not relent in its support for the fight against illegal trade of wildlife product," said Wan Ziming, director of Enforcement and Training at the Endangered Species Office of the State Forestry Administration of China during a training session on control of illegal wildlife product trade in Nairobi.

He noted that China is a signatory to international treaties that ban illegal trade in wildlife products. The Chinese government has supported a global campaign against illegal hunting of African elephants and rhinos.

In 2013, China entered into a partnership with the UN Environment Program to help scale up the fight against elephant poaching in Africa. Chinese actress Li Bingbing and the former basketball star Yao Ming are leading voices in the campaign.

The director added that Chinese embassies and state-owned enterprises operating in Africa will also be involved in the campaign.

Experts in wildlife conservation noted that China has established a strong footprint in Africa and could offer financial and technical support to the fight against poaching. Endi

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