Supporting communities to preserve the okapi

Okapi Conservation Project

Dear difteur-ses,

Thanks to your support, the Okapi Conservation Project is continuing its community actions in the heart of the Okapis Wildlife Reserve. The MARFO (Mamans Amies de la Réserve de Faune à Okapis) initiative supports nearly 300 women through training in sewing, embroidery, knitting and gardening, enabling them to develop sustainable incomes while protecting the forest.

The income generated, ranging from $10 to $250 a month, improves the lives of local families. Coordinated by Joséphine Nobikana Abeda, an expert in sustainable development, this program strengthens the place of women in the conservation and enhancement of their environment.

In recent months, a new milestone has also been reached with the inauguration of the Wamba education and agroforestry office, built thanks to the 2024 end-of-year campaign. This will become a space for exchange and training between local communities, authorities and conservationists.

Supporting women around the Okapi Wildlife Reserve

Beauval Nature

Dear supporters,

Thanks to your support, the Okapi Conservation Project coordinates actions in the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, located in the Ituri Forest, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Their actions continued in 2024 in the 3 components of the program:

▪️ Wildlife protection in the Okapi Wildlife Reserve:

- Increasing the number of ecoguards,
- Maintaining equipment and infrastructure,
- Deploying photographic traps,
- Developing a conservation strategy,
- Providing medical care for 2,000 ecoguards from the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature and their families.

▪️ Community support:
- Distribution of more than 75,000 tree seedlings to 1,000 farmers,
- Creation of more than 580 vegetable gardens for families.
- Support for food security: training, development of sources of income for women, distribution of farming tools and seeds.

▪️ Awareness-raising among villagers, schoolchildren, community leaders and government representatives.

Supporting communities to preserve the okapi

The organization Okapi Conservation Project