Strenghtening the involvement of local communities in the Reserve
With 27 villages and about 20,000 inhabitants, the Reserve is a dynamic territory. Involving the community representatives in the management of the Reserve is crucial to enhance the ownership of the Reserve objectives by local communities.
The presidential decree creating the Reserve in 2001 has set a Steering Comittee in charge of overseing the management of the Reserve. The Committee is made up of 10 members, all representatives of the governement.
To facilitate the dialogue with the local communities, we have supported the creation of an institutionnal body gathering all the community representatives of the Reserve. Officially created in 2020, the Local Management Committee (LMC) represents the local communities and it meets regularly with the Reserve to discuss local development issues.
At the local level, a Local Management Plan (LMP) was designed for each villages. The LMP defines within each village territory a zoning made up of a conservation zone and a natural resource use zone. Priority activities are identified and a Natural Ressource Management Committee (NMRC) oversees the implementation of the LMP. Members of the NMRC are represented in the Local Management Committee (LMC).