Ghana urged to enforce ban on slaughter and export of skins

On 17 January 2017 the Ministry of Food and Agriculture authorised a ban on the slaughter and export of donkey skins from Ghana. Worrying evidence suggests that the law is not being enforced, even though the Veterinary Services Directorate has publicly said: “The Veterinary Services Directorate has observed with alarm, a sharp increase in the number of donkeys being slaughtered on a daily basis especially in the northern parts of the country. At this rate, the population is likely to be depleted within two to three years.”

They continued: “The Veterinary Services Directorate has therefore decided to ban with immediate effect, the indiscriminate slaughter of donkeys and the export of their skins. All Regional Veterinary Officers are to ensure that this directive is strictly complied with. Anybody caught in defying this directive will be strictly dealt with.”

Both The Donkey Sanctuary and Ghana SPCA are in strong agreement that if this law is not upheld then the welfare of donkeys and Ghana’s poorest citizens who rely on donkeys for farming activities and the transportation of goods (especially in rural areas) are going to be affected in a catastrophic way.

There is an unsustainable rise in the slaughter of donkeys for the skin trade - largely due to growing demand for ejiao, a traditional Chinese medicine which uses the gelatin found in donkey hides for products alleged to offer anti-ageing properties.

With skin supply unable to meet demand, criminal traders, including some linked to wildlife trafficking, have resorted to stealing working donkeys, and are selling their skins for premium prices to the ejiao industry.

As well as sourcing, transporting and slaughtering these animals inhumanely, they are causing devastation to the people who depend on these domestic animals for their livelihood.