Vasant (Vas) Narasimhan
Chairperson of the Board, African Parks Network
This year marks 25 years since African Parks was founded. The purpose that drove its founding is even more urgent today than it was then: to safeguard some of Africa’s most important natural landscapes, in genuine partnership with the governments and communities that live alongside them.
Today, African Parks manages more than 20 million hectares in partnership with 13 African governments and hundreds of local communities. The scale of this work reflects both the maturity of the organisation and the strength of the partnerships that underpin it. African Parks has adapted continuously to a changing world while holding to a clear conviction: that long-term, accountable management of protected areas can reverse ecological decline and improve human wellbeing – and that this work is most enduring when it is led from the continent, by African institutions, alongside the people who carry it on the ground.
2025 was another year of meaningful progress across the portfolio, but also one that asked the organisation to evolve. Safeguarding human rights in and around the protected areas we manage is not an add-on; it is foundational. The Board implemented deliberate governance and oversight adjustments, including the establishment of an Independent Panel of African legal and human rights specialists to oversee our Grievance and Redress Mechanism. We also constituted a Rights and Safeguards Sub-Committee of the Board and delivered targeted training across the organisation – to embed a rigorous human rights-based approach in our work. The Board will continue to champion those frameworks and hold itself and the organisation accountable to them.
The operating environment also shifted sharply in 2025, with a significant loss of international financial support. The organisation’s response – absorbing the impact across the portfolio, moving quickly to alternative funding, and maintaining operations without interruption – reflects an institution that has matured and gives me confidence in its ability to navigate what comes next.
Our in-park Board meeting in Rwanda this year left a lasting impression on me. Walking into the new headquarters of Nyungwe National Park – built entirely by local partners, with sustainable materials– was physical proof of what happens when conservation is invested in for the long term. Watching Rwandan and international visitors alike experience the park, and seeing the local economy that has grown up around it, was tangible proof that well-managed conservation not only safeguards critical ecosystems, it creates economic opportunity, income and pride in the places that host it.
Looking ahead, African Parks remains focused on the goal of managing 30 million hectares across 30 protected areas by 2030. Delivering on that ambition will require deeper collaboration with national institutions and regional partners, further investment in community-driven models, strengthened human rights, and accelerated sustainable financing so that more landscapes and more people can benefit from conservation done well.
To the staff, government partners, community leaders, donors, and supporters who make this work possible –thank you. What has been achieved over these 25 years matters now more than it ever has, and must be built on. We enter the next chapter of African Parks grounded in the strength of our people and our partnerships, and we are committed to meeting the moment ahead with the clarity, integrity and long view that this critical work requires.
Sincerely,
Vas Narasimhan