8.02.08 - African wildlife conservation and management (AWCM)

About Unit

This Working Party aims to highlight the interdependence of wildlife and habitat and give an overview of the interactions between habitat management and wildlife ecology, and inspired further investigations of the threats to wildlife in Africa. This scope will be achieved through conference workshops organizations, News letter writing, global network promoting among forest and wildlife conservationists to raise awareness for wildlife management legacy programs, and raise the profile of wildlife management globally in Africa.


State of Knowledge

The real African landscapes are caught in a struggle between population growth, development needs, and globalization.  In the middle of all this are Africa's plant and animal systems. Wildlife management in Africa faces complex challenges including depleted resources, competition for habitats used by wildlife, poaching, changing habitats, and an increasing human population. Successful conservation efforts look beyond human borders to balance the needs of wildlife and people at the landscape level and conservation efforts consider every aspect of the land and its role in the lives of animals and people. Conserving Africa's wildlife biodiversity is a complicated problem that marks battle lines between various actors: global organizations and local peoples; hunters, environmentalists and tourists; rich and poor; Africans and non-Africans. So establishing a working group with conservationist from Africa at every level could be a unique way to support conservation policy. The working group will discuss essentially on the following hot topics:   

  1. The importance of wild animals and their parts in the culture' religious festivals, and traditional medicine.
  2. How conservation enterprises development could benefit the local communities and provide viable incentives for conservation of wildlife resource in Africa.
  3. The role of education and training for current and future African conservationists and scientists.
  4. Participatory protected area management in Africa: practices, experiences and recommendations for the future generations.
  5. The role of wildlife as ecosystem services providers for crops, wild plants and humans.
  6. The impact of deforestation on wildlife conservation in Africa.
  7. Planning wildlife conservation in a climate change context in Africa.
  8. Wildlife trade in Africa