Transboundary conservation in South Sudan and Ethiopia

May 18, 2025

The Boma–Gambella Landscape is home to the largest mammal migration on the planet. Protecting the migration is made harder by the fact that it crosses an international border between South Sudan and Ethiopia. Stakeholders have now taken a major step towards finessing that.

  • The Intergovernmental Authority on Development and African Parks Network, an NGO that operates national parks, have signed an agreement to enhance transboundary conservation across the entire affected Boma–Gambella Landscape. Also participating is the European Union as a funder.  

  • Transboundary conservation areas (TBCAs) play a crucial role in ensuring the protection of wildlife and natural resources across political boundaries. While Africa already has 27 TBCAs, there is potential for 8,481 more, covering nearly 2,000,000 km², according to a recent research. 

  • Our take: For decades, African conservation depended on foreign aid aligned with external agendas. Private investment offers a more enduring alternative, unlocking the vast potential of transboundary conservation across the continent…Read more (2 min)

Community conservation funding across Africa has surged and Tanzania is in the lead most recently. The $12 million Pamoja Tuhifadhi Bahari Yetu project, funded by the EU, focuses on coastal ecosystem restoration and entrepreneurship. It stands out for its grant mechanism, targeting over 500,000 people.

  • In our monthly review, Liberia and Sierra Leone follow with the $4 million Gola Resilience, Empowerment, Access and Peacebuilding (GOLA-REAP) project, financed by the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund, targeting biodiversity conservation in the Gola Rainforest and peacebuilding across border communities.

  • In Mozambique, Peace Parks Foundation has committed $5 million to Banhine National Park. The project will support wildlife conservation, promote livestock rearing, and strengthen community-tourism links over three years.

  • Our take: A continental shift towards greater involvement of local communities in conservation projects is now routinely feeding through to the frontlines. But the methods still differ greatly and understanding them is pertinent to setting and implementing conservation goals… Read more (2 min)

For the first time since its establishment over 50 years ago, Banhine National Park in Mozambique is sharing 20% of its revenue directly with surrounding communities. A cheque for $10,000 was presented to organised groups through local leaders. Mozambican law entitles communities to this share.

  • In Zinave National Park, Mozambique, a second $10,000 revenue share funded the construction of teacher houses and the establishment of 40 beehives. In Nigeria's Gashaka Gumti Park, 450 women in Adamawa received livelihood support and a new women's centre, enhancing conservation-linked community engagement across the continent.

  • While this approach signifies progress in formalising community participation, the structure remains predominantly top-down, with limited revenue and high expectations.

  • Our take: Revenue-sharing and livelihood support may help reduce dependence on park resources. However, unless conflict resolution mechanisms, such as compensation for crop or livestock loss, are integrated into the model, feelings of resentment may persist…Read more (2 min)

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The Lusaka Agreement Task Force meets to discuss progress on wildlife law enforcement

Events

🗓️ Attend the International Congress for Conservation Biology in Australia (June 15)

🗓️ Register for the International Conference on Environment in South Africa (May 22)

Jobs

👷Be an Associate Environmental Analyst at NYS Department of Agriculture (Liberia)

👷Become the Director of Business Development at World Wildlife Fund (Kenya)

👷Become the Senior Director, Conservation Impact at World Wildlife Fund (Kenya)

Various 

💰 Apply for small conservation grants in Guinea by BirdLife International

💰 Apply for the Ford Environmental Grants Program for biodiversity conservation

💰 Apply for EU Green Funding for nature and biodiversity conservation projects

Seen on LinkedIn 

The Office of Kenya's Special Envoy on Climate Change, says, “African peatlands store vast amounts of carbon but are currently under immense threat. Over a third of the world’s wetlands have disappeared since 1970. In the last 15 years alone, wetlands have been destroyed at three times the rate of forests. The solution? Integrating wetland protection into climate policies and empowering local communities as conservation partners.”

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