An innovative project to protect a significant buffer zone

The forest concessions where operates the forestry company Congolaise Industrielle des Bois (CIB) are home to crucial populations of endangered mammals. Since 1999, WCS has been working with CIB and the Congolese government to work with all stakeholders in the region to preserve its wildlife through the Projet de Gestion des Écosystèmes Périphériques au Parc National de Nouabalé-Ndoki (PROGEPP)

Covering 13,000 sq km

In contact with 4 Protected Areas

Harboring 24 000 gorillas

CHALLENGES

Loss of remoteness: growth in the workforce and roads needed to operate neighboring forest concessions, leading to increased anthropic pressure, habitat loss and encroachment
Lack of alternatives: increased reliance on bushmeat and ivory poaching as sources of protein or income
Regional instability: incursion of foreign poachers as other Central African elephant populations are wiped out
Ecosystem fragmentation: tarred road project linking Ouesso to Bangui, passing just a few kilometers from the Park
Disease dispersal: increased human/wildlife interface leading to greater zoonotic risks

OUR APPROACH

EXTENDING CONSERVATION EFFORTS

By helping to reduce pressure on wildlife around protected areas, PROGEPP creates a buffer zone of significant importance for the conservation of high-integrity forests.

SUPPORTING BIOMONITORING

The Park has invested in three long-term research projects to better understand the ecosystems it shelters and the threats they face. Applied science informs the Park’s strategies and the promotion of best management practices for extractive activities in the surrounding forests.

PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE USE

The project works with Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities to help manage and sustainably use the natural resources on which they depend.

EDUCATION AND AWARENESS RAISING

Environmental education and awareness-raising promote dialogue with communities and their ownership of the issues that concern them most.

OUR IMPACT

Stable populations since 2012: 6,300 elephants, 24,000 gorillas and 5,000 chimpanzees
Reduced elephant killing:33 elephants found poached in 1999 against 3 in 2023
Reduced poaching: 1,356 live animals seized and released; 848 weapons seized; 113,373 metal traps seized and destroyed between 1999 and 2024
Livelihood support:400 micro-entreprises created and supported, 40 saving groups created

A LASTING PARTNERSHIP

CIB has been working in Congo since 1968, and WCS since 1991. CIB currently has over 1,000 permanent employees and operates on approximately 2.2 million hectares. Since 2004, all its forest concessions are FSC-certified, widely regarded as the most rigorous forest certification, demonstrating CIB’s commitment to sustainable environmental, social and economic practices.

Today, CIB is part of the Olam Group, a leading agribusiness supplying food, ingredients, feed and fiber to customers worldwide. Its value chain spans more than 60 countries and includes farming, processing and distribution activities.

Since June 2020, Olam has been included in the FTSE4Good Index Series, a global sustainable investment index series developed by FTSE Russell, following a rigorous assessment of Olam’s supply chain activities, environmental impact and governance transparency.

PROGEPP is a pioneering project involving a successful partnership between the public sector, the private sector and a conservation organization. It has led to the emergence of Unités de Surveillance et de Lutte Anti-Braconnage (USLAB) in other forest concessions in northern Congo, and has inspired similar initiatives in Gabon and the Central African Republic.

The success of this collaborative model has contributed to key publications including those below