Saudi Arabia Joins International Big Cat Alliance as 26th Member Country

Saudi Arabia has become the newest member of the International Big Cat Alliance. With this, the Alliance now has 26 member countries and five observer countries.

It is a platform that brings together countries that are home to the seven big cats: lion, tiger, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma.

Established by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2024, the IBCA is a multi-country, multi-agency coalition comprising 95 big cat range and non-range countries interested in big cat conservation, scientific organizations engaged in big cat research, and business groups and corporations committed to supporting conservation efforts.

The platform aims to facilitate collaboration and coordination among stakeholders, gathering successful conservation practices and expertise in a centralized repository.

The International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) was first proposed by the Indian Prime Minister on Global Tiger Day in July 2019. Its goal was to create a coalition of world leaders to prevent poaching, eliminate demand, and end the illegal wildlife trade.

The International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA)

It is headquartered in New Delhi, India. It focuses on the global conservation of seven big cat species: tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma. Currently, it has 26 member countries and five observer countries.

The IBCA is a multi-country, multi-agency alliance. It includes 95 countries where these big cats are found, as well as countries where they are not found, conservation organizations, scientific institutions, trade groups, and companies with an interest in the conservation of these big cats.

Nodal Agency: Established by the Government of India through the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).

National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA)

A statutory body under the Wildlife Conservation Commission (MoEFCC), the NTCA was established in 2005 following the recommendations of the Tiger Task Force and received legal status under Section 38L of the Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006.