In 1989, the African elephant was listed under which CITES appendix?

In 1989, the African elephant was listed under CITES Appendix I.

CITES—the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora—uses appendices to regulate international trade in protected species. Appendix I is the strictest category, covering species threatened with extinction and generally prohibiting commercial international trade in wild-caught specimens.

The African elephant was moved from Appendix II to Appendix I in 1989, after severe poaching and the international ivory trade caused major population declines. The decision became a landmark conservation action and was closely associated with the global ivory-trade ban of that period.

The wording needs historical context. Several southern African populations were later transferred to Appendix II with annotations, allowing limited, tightly controlled forms of trade. Those later exceptions do not change the answer for the 1989 listing question: the broad African elephant listing was Appendix I.