News from the Congo Basin forests

The total population of the mountain gorilla subspecies is about 700 individuals, split almost evenly into two groups: one in the Virunga range of volcanoes on the Uganda-Rwanda-DRC border, and the other in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda.

23 Dec 2008
Conflict zone Mountain Gorillas viewed by rangers for first time in more than a year
Mountain gorillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been seen by park rangers for the first time since the rangers were forced out of areas of Virunga National Park by Laurent Nkunda’s army 15 months ago.
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Cutting the wood in the plantation and taking it to the collection point for transport. DR Congo - Gorilla Appeal 2007

03 Nov 2008
Targets and timelines needed for Africa’s new sustainability roadmap
More protected areas, respect for indigenous populations, the sharing of benefits and greater care for forests were all features of a broad sustainability action plan outlined last week by African nations.
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Mountain gorillas (<I>Gorilla beringei beringei</I>), Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo.

30 Oct 2008
Crisis threatens park, gorillas and people of eastern Congo
The ongoing conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has recently intensified and more than half of the world’s remaining mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park are still without security.
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GWZ, an international Dutch company, cuts the best hardwood trees in the forest, here a Lindani tree.

29 Oct 2008
Demand for African natural resources can ensure sustainable use
African nations could turn the demand for their natural resources currently driving deforestation and other destruction into a force for higher returns from sustainable development, WWF has said today.
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Bruno WENN, Director General of KfW (Africa) and WWF International Director General, Jim Leape at the entrance into the Dzanga Sangha Project area in Bayanga, Central African Republic

06 Aug 2008
Congo Basin is one of the most important places on earth, Jim P. Leape

The Director General of WWF International, Jim P. Leape accompanied by the Director General of the Africa region segment of the German Dvelopment Bank, KfW recently made a whirlwind trip to parts of the Congo Basin rainforest, where the visited protected areas, logging companies and met WWF teams on the ground. While in Lobeke National Park, in the Southeast of Cameroon the WWF International Drector General spoke about the importance of the green heart of Africa and conservation challenges that lie ahead.

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The Congo Basin rainforest is the second-largest in the world, after the Amazon rainforest.

31 Jul 2008
Congo Basin passes 1 million ha milestone in swing to sustainable forestry
Yaoundé, Cameroon - WWF today announced that more than one million hectares of Congo Basin forests have achieved certification under the world’s leading sustainable forestry scheme.
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The receding glaciers of the Stanley Group at Rwenzori, 1952 (top) and 2008 (below)

17 Mar 2008
Vanishing central African glaciers signal climate danger
Forget the snows of Kilimanjaro – Africa is at risk of losing the central African glaciers that are the highest permanent source of water to the Nile

A WWF and partner organization expedition to the Rwenzori mountains has gathered graphic evidence of declining glaciated areas, with new estimates being that the glaciers will completely disappear in the next 30 years » Read more

22 Feb 2008
Congo, Rwanda and Uganda united to save mountain gorillas
Borders will matter less to central Africa’s mountain gorillas, following the launch of a strategic conservation plan and an associated project which covers adjoining areas of Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. » Read more

Millions dependent on the health of the Congo basin will benefit from the declaration of three new RAMSAR wetlands, including the world's second largest.

02 Feb 2008
Congo Wetlands reserve to be world's second largest
WWF has welcomed the World Wetlands Day declaration of the world’s second largest internationally recognized and protected significant wetlands reserve in the Congo as a clear sign of the world’s increasing interest in the green heart of Africa. » Read more

24 Nov 2007
Ten millionth tree planted in Congo's gorilla habitat
WWF and Congolese authorities are celebrating the ten millionth tree planted around Virunga National Park in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a crucial habitat for the endangered mountain gorilla. » Read more

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