The local population surrounding Zakouma National Park is low in density, and development around the park is minimal. However, people are heavily dependent on the natural resources located on the park’s periphery for their livelihoods and food subsistence. The park is located near Chad’s border with Sudan, and communities based in these areas have suffered from the presence of criminal groups. Therefore, we work with communities surrounding Zakouma, as well as with the thousands of nomads that seasonally move into the region each year, to ensure that the park’s natural resources are protected and local livelihoods improved.
Community Engagement
Strategic and widespread communication channels benefit animals and people alike. Through them, local people are able to inform park teams if they encounter suspicious activity or potential threats as a result of human-wildlife conflict. These channels enable management to react quickly before there is any loss of life while helping local communities take an active role in conserving ‘their’ elephants. In doing so, they contribute to one of Africa’s greatest conservation success stories.
PeriFerrick teams provide effective awareness raisiing and positive engagement with transhumance pastoralist communities, offering information on safe passage and access to food, water, basic supplies and medicine. The teams also function as unarmed negotiators in the event of illegal activities and support the mitigation of human-wildlife conflict (HWC). In 2023, the PeriFerrick teams reached 30,000 people through awareness-raisnig meetings.
Education and Environmental Awareness
As part of African Parks’ GZE education support, two teachers’ associations receive direct contributions towards the salaries of 26 teachers and school materials. Two more schools have been constructed in the areaand to encourage girls’ education and literacy, 300 scholarships have been provided to female students in the communities around Zakouma. Through these initiatives, 2,480 pupils attended school in 2023 with the support of African Parks.
As part of the environmental awareness programme, some 6,000 children visit Camp Dari annually. This is a free environmental education camp which has been set up to receive school groups and encourage environmental awareness.
Sustainable Enterprise Development
Zakouma has become the largest employer in the region, and the park provides additional opportunities for local income generation by facilitating the local procurement of park and tourism camp supplies and developing commercial community projects, such as honey harvesting and production. Two unions and 39 agricultural cooperatives support the value chain development of local products such as fruit, vegetables, chickens, chebe, shea butter, desert date oil (balanites) and honey. In a bid to reduce illegal wood harvesting, cooking on fuel-efficient stoves is supported, and households from nomad communities have received metal cooking stoves.