Ivory trade thriving in Laos amid crackdown in neighbouring countries

The illegal sale of African ivory in Laos is surging as China phases out its legal market.

The illegal sale of African ivory in Laos is surging even as neighbouring China phases out its own legal market, a report claims.

Save The Elephants, a Kenya-based conservation group, said today that the number of Chinese-owned retail outlets selling elephant ivory in the Southeast Asian country increased significantly between 2013 and 2016, and that the majority of buyers are visitors from China.