Shadow operations in wildlife trade under China’s Belt and Road Initiative

Minimal attention has been given to the ways in which the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) interacts with the informal economy. Drawing on fieldwork investigations and published reports, this article shows how the BRI interacts with the informal economy of illegal wildlife trade in tiger parts and pangolins. It also examines the part played by the practice of land-grabbing in this interaction. The article seeks to make three theoretical contributions. First, it unveils the shadow networks that operate in tandem with formal economic trade. Second, it demonstrates how the economic interdependence of states allows illicit wildlife traders to carve out governance spaces in which they impose their own managerial systems, thus making prosecution of underground wildlife businesses difficult. Third, it concludes that those responsible for the BRI should be mindful of the effect it can have on the environment, particularly on the survival of local wildlife.