Nyungwe Partners

The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) is the government agency responsible for managing Rwanda’s national parks and protected areas. Its mission is to transform and develop Rwanda’s economy by enabling its private-sector growth. African Parks began its work with the RDB in Akagera National Park in 2010 and in Nyungwe National Park in 2020. In both agreements, African Parks recognises RDB CEO, Francis Gatare, and senior management for their unwavering support of Akagera and Nyungwe.

The Danish Hempel Foundation is the sole shareholder of the Hempel Group and a dedicated philanthropist. The Foundation is committed to making a difference by empowering children to learn and to address the biodiversity crisis, focusing on three crucial areas: sustaining specific key biodiversity areas, the development of new sources of finance for biodiversity conservation, and strengthening collective efforts. In 2023, the Hempel Foundation supported African Parks on the ground in Nyungwe National Park, Rwanda and in Boma and Badingilo national parks, South Sudan.

A charitable foundation established in 2017 by Jan Verhagen, a Dutch entrepreneur, Natura Africae is dedicated to the conservation of national parks and protected areas in Africa, recognising the reciprocal relationship between the livelihoods of local communities and the successful protection of an ecosystem’s wildlife. The Foundation provided €4.1 million in 2023, supporting park operations in Liuwa Plain, Odzala-Kokoua, Matusadona, Nyungwe and Ennedi. The grant also provided catalytic funding to strengthen African Parks’ community development work, particularly related to education.

The Foundation is a private charitable organisation dedicated to supporting innovative, lasting solutions that improve lives, empower communities and strengthen connections to the land. The Foundation’s relationship with African Parks began in 2015 with a grant to support the restoration of Akagera National Park, followed by a significant investment in Malawi’s Liwonde National Park and Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve. In 2017, the Foundation made a ground-breaking commitment of US$65 million to provide ongoing support for Akagera and the Malawi parks, along with start-up funding for five new parks. This enabled the addition of Pendjari and W in Benin, Bazaruto Archipelago National Park in Mozambique, Iona National Park in Angola and Matusadona National Park in Zimbabwe. In 2021, the Foundation furthered its support of African Parks with another extraordinary commitment of US$108 million, which will provide for the continued support of current Wyss-funded parks, as well as start-up funding for another five new parks. Three new parks in the African Parks portfolio – Kafue National Park in Zambia, Badingilo and Boma National Parks in South Sudan – are benefitting from the Wyss Foundation’s latest commitment and two are benefiting from renewal commitments – Bazaruto and Pendjari.