Programme

Gashaka Gumti’s forests are classified by WWF’s Global 200 Ecoregions as part of the Cameroon Highlands Forest ecoregion and have some of Africa’s highest levels of plant and animal endemism. The park is home to one of West Africa’s largest populations of the endangered Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee sub-species. The park is a regional stronghold for two of Africa’s pangolins (giant and white-bellied). Other important animals include leopard, golden cat, forest buffalo, and a wide range of other primates and antelopes. The park is an important watershed for the river Benue upon whom millions of people depend downstream.

The GGNP is threatened by poaching, logging, artisanal mining, and forest fires that are often started by cattle herders. The park had been chronically underfunded for many years with poorly trained and ill-equipped rangers unable to tackle these threats. This situation started to change 5 years ago when ANI took-on the co-management of the park with the National Park Service, though challenges remain.

The programme led by ANI supports:

• Protection and law enforcement in GGNP by (well trained) park rangers;
• Biodiversity research and monitoring with national and international universities for management purposes;
• Sustainable pastoralism, agro-forestry and agriculture in buffers zones adjacent to GGNP and improvement of cooperation with the park management;
• Nature based tourism development aimed at middle-class Nigerians.
• National policy implementation (Endangered Species Act);
• Cooperation between Nigeria and Cameroon to advance the gazettement and management of Tchabal Mbabo and creation of a transboundary protected area.

The programme is also supported by the European Union, the Pangolin Crisis Fund and other funders.