Ivory carvings seized by the UK Border Force at Heathrow Airport, London on November 22, 2017. [Photo: Reuters]The Kenya Wildlife Service has praised the British government over its plan to close its domestic ivory markets, though with some exceptions.KWS spokesman Paul Gathitu on Monday said the existence of the trade wipe out any chances for opportunists who may have in the past used the existing market in antique ivory as a cover for trade in illegal ivory."The existence of these markets fuels demand for ivory within the UK and abroad thus contributing to poaching," Gathitu said as quoted by the Star.On January 5, Kenya’s determination to end all trade in ivory got a boost after the UK announced plans to end the domestic ivory trade.UK’s head of prosperity team and deputy permanent representative to the UN John Hamilton told the media in Nairobi that the ban was on course.Worked ivory continues to be traded legally within UK and the other EU member states in auction houses, markets, shops and online .Antique items can even be traded without permits or certificates and existing rules allow for 'worked' or carved items produced before March 3, 1947 to be sold in the UK, says the Star.UK’s Environment Secretary Michael Gove had earlier raised concerns over the decline in the elephant population fueled by poaching."Ivory should never be seen as a commodity for financial gain or a status symbol, so we want to ban its sale. These plans will put the UK front and centre of global efforts to end the insidious trade in ivory,”Gove said.Kenya has been pushing for a total ban on ivory trade, warning the trade risks wiping out elephants.China effective January 1, 2018 banned the mainland domestic sale of elephant ivory and related products, a significant move toward slowing poaching of elephants."The UK’s plan to follow suit could not have come at a better time,"Gathitu said.

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