Promotion of participatory and inclusive management of the Ebo Proposed National Park

The Ebo Proposed National Park (EPNP, 1 110km2), located approximately at 60 km from Douala, is one of the most important remaining tracks of closed-canopy forest in the Littoral region where Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees (Pan troglydtes ellioti, EN), Cross-river gorillas (Gorilla diehli, CR), elephants (Loxodonta cyclotis, EN), drills (Mandrillus Leacophaeus, EN) and Preuss’ red colobus (Piliocolobus Preussi, CR) can be found.

In 2008, WWF initiated the process for the creation of a national park but gave up after 5 years and to date the Ebo Proposed National Park has not yet been classified by the Government of Cameroon. The EPNP is mainly threatened by poaching and illegal trafficking but also by illegal logging and the establishment of an extensive plantation of oil palms in the buffer zone. The proposed project is targeting the villages of Mamba, Ndobong and Ebo where poachers and other wildlife traffickers that constitute more 70% of the population. The general purpose of the project is to contribute to effective management of the EPNP by enhancing community participation in the management of the proposed national park.