African elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations have
declined throughout West Africa as a consequence of hunting and
habitat loss and are now found only in small and isolated habitat
fragments. Major declines probably occurred well before the turn of
the 20th Century and elephant populations have remained at low
levels ever since. Many populations have become extremely
threatened, with an estimated 90 percent of their range now
destroyed.
Considerable work has already been done to identify the most urgent
areas of need. Addressing illegal killing is understandably a first
order priority for many organisations, as is evidenced by the
African Elephant Fund and the African Elephant Fund Steering
Committee recommending the funding five of six projects with a focus
on illegal hunting and trade. Conservation organisations are also
investing significant effort in local capacity building to combat
illegal hunting.
However, the long-term survival of African elephants will not be
secured if habitat conservation is not also considered. The
Strategy for the Conservation of West African Elephants, 2005
emphasized that because so many habitats have already disappeared,
it is essential that no more areas are lost and that the remainder
are effectively managed. Institutional weaknesses across West Africa
exacerbate the problem. Many Government wildlife departments lack
the personnel or budget needed to carry out their mandate.
Consequently parks and reserves are not effectively protected from
poachers and agricultural encroachment, elephant management plans
cannot be drawn up or implemented, surveys cannot be conducted and
there are no monitoring programmes.
In 2011, the CMS West African Elephant Memorandum of Understanding
(West African Elephant MoU) ‘Medium Term Work Programme’ prioritized
strengthening cooperation between Range States for the management of
transboundary elephant habitats.
During the Convention on Migratory Species 10th Conference of the
Parties (CMS CoP10), 2011, Parties recognized that ecological
networks of wildlife habitat should be integrated in national
environmental planning, including plans currently being developed
under the auspices of other Multilateral Environmental Agreements,
such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), National
Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) and the Framework
Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) National Adaptation Programmes
of Action (NAPAs).
Wild Migration Programme Goal
Wild Migration strives for a future where African elephant
populations in at least three West African Elephant MoU countries
are secured. Habitat loss has been halted, illegal hunting is a
thing of the past and conservation activities recognize elephant
culture as an important element of conservation design. Wild
Migration Policy Targets
Wild Migration is working to strategically develop region wide
institutional capacity to coordinate efforts between the West
African Elephant MoU countries with ecological networks of elephant
habitat that:
1) meet commitments to CMS, including the CMS Ecological Networks
process and CMS' evolving work on culture;
2) contribute to CITES, CBD, FCCC processes;
3) are articulated in NBSAPs and NAPAs; and
4) lay the foundations for regular process of tracking and reporting
of progress to the West African Elephant MoU and CMS Parties, to aid
the likelihood of future funding. |
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Wild Migration Projects contact details
RSD 426 Newland Service,
Via Kingscote, 5223, Australia
Phone: +618 8121 5841
Fax: +618 8125 5857
Email: projects[at]wildmigration.org
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