16th July 2015

Protection for Congo’s great apes

Effective conservation is all about cooperation. No matter how hard we work, we conservationists would not achieve much without the support of the authorities or without being able to work with other NGOs and charities.

This is especially true here in Congo, where poverty and insecurity combine with the usual bureaucracy and the associated challenges that come with running such a large country.

This is why I was so excited to attend a special awareness event held here in Goma just a few days ago. Organised by the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN) in partnership with other NGOs and with funding from the Arcus Foundation, the workshop was well attended and brought together the latest thinking on how civil society and governments can work together to protect great apes, not just here in Congo, but in all the ten countries where gorillas live in the wild.

The big highlight of the day was an informative lecture by Jean Claude Kyungu Kasolene. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you might remember that JC used to run our project at Mount Tshiaberimu and, while part of our team, he completed a Master’s degree in gorilla behaviour. So, he was the perfect choice to tell us all about the genetic differences between the four distinct types of gorilla and how things like their varied habitat and behaviour should influence how we approach our conservation efforts.

What’s more, we learned how, right across Africa, local communities are benefitting from the improved protection of great apes and other primates. We learned, for example, how the protection of monkeys along the southern part of the border between Nigeria and Cameroon has helped the forests there thrive, spelling good news for local people.

After the fascinating talk from JC, leading figures from the region pledged official support for ongoing efforts to protect both gorillas and chimpanzees. The Provincial Minster of the Environment for North Kivu, Anselme Kitakya, alongside the Vice-President of the Province, signed an agreement committing to the protection of flora and fauna, and in particular pledging to protect the habitat that serves as the last refuge of the great apes.

Now, we have to get busy ensuring the good words and followed up with action. Myself and the rest of the team here in Congo are busy rolling out our ambitious SafeZone project. This will see two million trees planted in order to create a safe space where gorillas can live free form human contact. But we must hurry! The rainy season starts in four weeks and we need to get all the saplings we have grown planted. Please help us if you can.