WCS Cameroon Deng Deng National Park Project
Deng Deng National Park is located about 50km southeast of the Mbam Djerem National Park and was demarcated within the wider Deng Deng forest reserve established in 1971, an area which includes a communal forest,logging concessions (Forest Management Unit, or UFA), as well as a small area that was dedicated to research. Together with the nearby Mbam Djerem National Park, adjacent logging concessions, and community forests, Deng Deng forms the largest conservation landscape in Cameroon and one of the most biodiverse.
WCS intervention in the Deng Deng landscape wasinitiated in the early 2009, as part of a collaborative effort between WCS and the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife (MINFOF), with funding support from the French Development Agency (AFD). The Deng Deng forest is home to the northernmost known population of the lowland gorilla, and also harboring other threatened species including chimpanzee, elephant, hippopotamus, giant Pangolin,Yellow backed duiker.
Goals
Our goal in the Deng Deng forest landscape is to maintain the core great apes conservation areas of about 120 000 ha as an intact functioning rainforest ecosystem sustaining a viable population of gorilla chimpanzee and other endangered species such as forest elephant.
Activities
- Technical assistance and logistical support for law enforcement, national park protection,management and planning
- Biological and socio-economic surveys and monitoring
- Landscape planning including land use management and the creation of a consultative platform of stakeholder with the aim to facilitate coordination and collaboration between all interested parties active across the landscape
- Capacity building in natural resources management and support for livelihood initiatives
- Environmental education and raising awareness for the protection of great apes and biodiversity conservation
Threats
Threats to great ape populations and biodiversity in the area are poaching and illegal logging. Exacerbating these threats is the ongoing construction of the 60,000ha Lom Pangar dam, as this will attract many people to the region in search of opportunities and who will likely engage in natural resource extraction and further degradation of natural habitats