Gorilla Journal 22, June 2001

A Community Project for Conservation

As part of the ongoing activities of the Tayna Gorilla Reserve Project (RGT), a seminar for local landowners was held at Butembo from 29 to 31 January 2001. Led by Chief Warden Pierre Kakule, 35 participants discussed community conservation, the protection of gorillas and other endangered species, and the establishment of protected areas. These seminars and open discussions allowed local landowners to participate and understand community conservation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as well as other parts of Africa.
The seminar included the following presentations: Present Conservation Policy in Congo (Mr. Kyungu/RGT); Experiences with Community Conservation in Southern Africa (Mr. Jobogo, Warden/ICCN); Gorilla Conservation at Mount Kyabirimu (Mr. Kasivika/NGO COTEDER); Education and Sensitization of Local Populations (Mr. Ngahinga/NGO SYDIP); The Role of Women in the Management of Natural Resources (Ms. Kalindula/NGO UWAKI); Conservation and Development Experience from the Epulu Okapi Reserve (Mr. Ndimu/PEVi-WWF); Community Reforestation and Education around the Virunga National Park (Mr. Ndimu/PEVi-WWF); Gorilla Protection in the Sarambwe Forest (Mr. Buturu/NGO GAIDER).
The seminar also used video films about mountain gorilla monitoring, mammal eco-ethology in the Virunga National Park, and agroforestry in southern Africa to help educate the local landowners. During the 3 days, the landowners participated in various discussion groups to evaluate the problems around the reserve and they proposed the following solutions:
Related to ecosystems

  • Involvement of whole hierarchy in administration and use of lands (land owner/chieftaincy/collectivity);
  • Resolution of land conflicts;
  • Training and education of population in rational use of forest habitats;
  • Halt human migration towards the Tayna Gorilla Reserve.

Related to the human population

  • Identify people who are not locals in the area and find means to remove them (e.g. gold miners);
  • Stimulate the political-administrative authorities to provide aid;
  • Stimulate agricultural activities and credit to increase familial income;
  • Train the people, introduce them to micro-projects for self-financing;
  • Improve roads and provide health centres and schools at low fees;
  • Foster a sedentary population by generating micro-projects;
  • Educate population about gorillas, forests, and their natural biological heritage.

Related to women

  • Encourage women to participate in dialogue committees;
  • Train and educate rural women (literacy);
  • Encourage women to participate in local micro-projects.

Each of the organizations involved (Tayna Gorilla Reserve Project, NGOs, land chiefs, political-administrative authorities) decided to take priority actions based on the recommendations formulated during the discussion groups. The following recommendations received the highest priorities:

  • The local land chiefs who had received training during the seminar would return to their areas and train their neighbours about conservation and rational management of biodiversity;
  • Personnel recruited for the Tayna Project should come from local communities in and around the reserve;
  • The project should support the education of local landowners' children;
  • Local women should be educated and trained on matters of biodiversity and conservation, and then be involved in Tayna Project activities;
  • Conservation Clubs (Friends of the Gorillas) should be created in order to popularise the notion of forest and fauna conservation;
  • The Tayna Project should form an official collaboration and technical exchange with ICCN.

Since the seminar, we are happy to report that a collaboration with ICCN (Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature) has been formed, three children’s conservation clubs are active, more locals have been hired to work as guides and trackers for the Tayna Project, and local chiefs are actively participating in the education of the rural population. A micro-project for local women is underway as one of the first development projects for the Tayna Reserve. Salaries, equipment and supplies are also being provided to the Tayna Project by the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International as primary conservation partner.

Pierre Kakule Vwirasihikya and Jean Claude Kyungu

Pierre Kakule Vwirasihikya has been working in the Virunga National Park since 1982 and became a Senior Warden in 1988. He took part in gorilla monitoring in the park. Currently, he is both the Tayna Gorilla Reserve Coordinator (since 1998) and the UGADEC Executive Secretary (since 2002). He won the ASP Conservation award in 2002.
Jean Claude Kyungu led an ecology NGO between 1994 and 1999. Since 1997, he has been the North-Kivu consultant on biodiversity. He headed the Tayna Gorilla Reserve and is now Project Manager for the Mt. Tshiabirimu Gorilla Project.

Tayna overview

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