CENTRAL AFRICA REGIONAL OPERATING UNIT (CAROU)

Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE)

Salonga

Semi-Annual Report

Reporting Period: October 01, 2017 to March 31, 2018

Submission Date: April 30, 2018

Agreement Number: Cooperative Agreement #AID-660-A-13-00006 Activity Start Date and End Date: October 01, 2013 to September 30, 2018 AOR Name: Antoine Justin Eyebe

Submitted by: Cary S. Farley, Chief of Party World Wildlife Fund 14, Avenue Sergent Moke Commune de Ngaliema Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Tel: +243 978 904 488 Email: [email protected]

July 2008 1

LIST OF ACRONYMS

AASD Action d’Aide Sanitaire et de Developpement-DRC BNS Basic necessities survey CAFEC Central Africa Forest Ecosystems Conservation CARPE Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment CBNRM Community-based natural resource management CLIP Consentement Libre Informé et Préalable CSO Civil society organization DRC Democratic Republic of the Congo EMAPS Environmental Monitoring and Policy Support ERZ Extractive resource zone EU European Union FARDC Forces armées de la République démocratique du Congo FED11 Fonds européen de développement (11ème) FY Fiscal year GPS Global positioning system Groupe de Recherche et d’appui aux interventions intégrées de la GRAINES malnutrition dans la santé HQ Headquarters ICCN Institut national pour la conservation de la nature IR Intermediate result IP Indigenous Peoples KfW Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau LSA Landscape application LUP Land-use planning Ministère de l’environnement, conservation de la nature et développement MECNDD durable MIKE Monitoring the illegal killing of elephants MPI Max Planck Institute NGO Non-governmental organization NRGT Natural Resource Governance Tool OSFAC Observatoire satellitaire des forêts d’Afrique centrale PA Protected area REDD+ Reduction of Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation SCAEMPS Central African Environmental Management and Policy Support SMART Spatial monitoring and reporting tool SNP Salonga National Park ToR Terms of reference TRAFFIC Thee Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network UNIKIN University of Kinshasa USAID United States Agency for International Development WCS World Conservation Society WRI World Resources Institute WWF World Wide Fund for Nature/World Wildlife Fund ZSM Zoological Society of Milwaukee

April 2018 3 1. PROGRAM OVERVIEW/SUMMARY

Program Name: FY18 Semi-Annual Report for LS8 Program

Activity Start Date and October 01, 2013 to September 30, 2018 End Date: Name of Prime World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Implementing Partner: [Contract/Agreement] Cooperative Agreement #AID-660-A-13-0006 Number:

Name of Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Subcontractors/Sub- awardees: Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) Major Counterpart Institut National pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN) Organizations Geographic Coverage CAFEC LANDSCAPE 08: SALONGA-LUKENIE-SANKURU (landscape, province(s) Provinces of Kasai, Maï Ndombe, Sankuru and Tshuapa, and countries) Democratic Republic of the Congo Reporting Period: October 01, 2017 to March 31, 2018

1.1 Program Description/Introduction

Salonga-Lukenie-Sankuru, located in central DRC south of the Maringa-Lopori-Wamba and east of the Lac Télé-Lac Tumba Landscapes, is one of the largest CARPE Landscapes. Approximately the size of Virginia, it is centered on the Salonga National Park, which is divided into two almost equally sized north and south sections.

The Salonga National Park (SNP) itself, has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984 and Africa's largest tropical rainforest park encompassing a nearly intact forest ecosystem of enormous ecological importance, sheltering the headwaters of seven major rivers, and home to the world’s largest bonobo population. If well protected, the Park holds the highest potential in the DRC for recovery of a long term viable forest elephant population. Furthermore, this pristine, barely explored forest covering an area of 33,000 km2 still includes the undisrupted floral and faunal assemblage of a lowland rainforest and is of untold importance for freshwater sources (including fisheries and drinking water) and carbon stocks. The landscape also includes three Community-Based Natural Resource Management Zones (CBNRMs) - Monkoto Corridor, Lotoi-Lokoro and Bolongo - in which community-based activities take place in an effort to support the preservation of the SNP and one Extractive Resource Zone (ERZ) - Oshwe. In 50 years, when large parts of Central African forests will likely have been converted, Salonga has the potential to remain one of the last refuges for biodiversity and carbon sequestration. It is in this context that the consortium has chosen the strategies described. Climate change strategies center around maintaining the current forest cover with the communities through prevention rather than through restoration, as deforestation rates are still low in and around the park. Biodiversity strategies focus on maintaining the current animal populations with the long-term aim of increasing those populations presently impacted by poaching, such as elephants. This is done through improved park management and law enforcement, as well as involving the local communities and political-administrative authorities in the four provinces in which the Salonga National Park is located.

The continued and ever-increasing threat of illegal hunting for ivory and bush-meat is one of the main focuses of the consortium. The lack of sufficient park management capacity and law enforcement remain important challenges, especially given the enormous size of the Salonga National Park. Other major issues facing SNP include expensive and demanding logistics, a guard force that lacks skills, experience and the necessary equipment, and inadequate infrastructure. Fortunately, additional funds from the German Development Bank (KfW) and the Environmental Development Fund (EDF - from the EU) have been leveraged as a result of the co-management agreement signed on August 27, 2015. This agreement formalizes WWF’s role as a key partner of ICCN’s who will support major improvements in general park management. These leveraged funds, together with CAFEC funding, will help ensure that infrastructure, logistics and training needs are addressed - along with the development of alternative livelihoods and constituency building. Indeed, participation and buy-in from neighboring communities will be key to reducing pressures on SNP.

Working with communities is key to achieving both our biodiversity Conservation and Climate Change, as educated, healthy and stable communities are less likely to enter the SNP to poach and overfish, or continue to practice slash and burn agriculture – a primary threat to forest cover throughout the Salonga Landscape.

Under the WWF-ICCN co-management scheme and together with the CAFEC consortium partners’ WCS and ZSM, as well as Oxfam, the Max Planck Institute, the Italian based NGO ISCO, and the local NGOs AASD, activities are implemented to address these challenges – building on the main lessons learned from past experiences.

April 2018 5

2. ACTIVITY IMPLEMENTATION PROGRESS

2.1 Overall progress

Following the establishment of appropriate monitoring mechanisms for the Salonga National Park, FY18 has so far been dedicated to continue the setup of a working co- management scheme with funds from additional donors such as the German Development Bank (KfW) and the European Development Fund (EDF). Despite the logistical challenge of accessing the landscape, along with the delay in receiving the first USAID obligation to cover the implementation in the first half of the year, significant achievements have been observed – and specifically in certain macro-zones.

The activities of all CAFEC partners for the first semester of FY18 focused on two main areas: Biodiversity conservation and combating wildlife trafficking as well as community development. The purpose of this phase was to consolidate on the successful approaches while at the same time focusing on the nine areas of focus that emerged from the results of the mid-term evaluation.

To better understand the progress observed in the implementation of our activities and the provisional results obtained, we propose to analyze them according to the 5 intervention strategies in the Salonga landscape.

Strengthen Protected Area (PA) management capacity (strategy 1)

Concerning the Biodiversity Conservation and Combating Wildlife Trafficking, the CAFEC consortium partners continued to contribution to the patrols organized by the Park Management Unit (UGPNS). This support consists of planning and evaluating patrols, as well as providing fuel and rations for the six sectors. Significant support has also been provided to strengthen the capacity of ecoguards and increase their level of participation in wildlife surveys.

Compared to previous years, the FY18 mid-term figures confirm the trend of improving patrol efforts initiated in FY17 (102 patrols, for an effort of 11,364 person days and 12,773.33 km of patrols). This is the result of the efforts of all partners through a harmonized approach.

Though some delays have occurred in the completion of inventories in the Monkoto Corridor (24%), we note the availability of data concerning key species in the northern block, while analysis are pending for the southern block data where MPI have complete inventories. Also data from the re-survey of the Etate surveillance area is being analyzed as part of the training for the ICCN biomonitoring team. This team conducted a resurvey of the Etate surveillance area and completed this task at the end of October 2017. Finally, as part of the MoU signed between WCS and the University of Leeds (United Kingdom), the carbon stock of 17 ha of primary and secondary forests has been quantified.

Alternatively, communities have been supported through education in 5 local schools and 2 adult literacy classes, as well as the support to 19 students (14 girls and 5 boys) from the Yaelima, enabling them to go to school / university focusing their future outside of the park.

Enhance law enforcement and prosecution (strategy 3): The UGPNS together with its partners has been working to develop mechanisms for community participation in the fight against poaching and wildlife trafficking, in accordance with the new surveillance strategy that has just been validated underlining that park protection can only be effective if communities are involved.

Strengthen the implementation of land use management plans (strategy 2): The participatory land use planning process implicating the authorities continued, though sometimes arduous through the change of certain provincial and territorial executives.

Also, significant emphasis has been placed on building the capacity of stakeholders, especially in the community forestry sector for example through the participatory mapping of five communities (Sambwankoy, Mbonga djale, Lotomba, Nkelenga, and Iwamba). Improved efforts in this area have also been fostered by collaboration with the various SCAEMPS partners and the LSA tool. There was a sharing of data and the launch of the internet platform which will further facilitate the sharing of data and experiences.

Promote sustainable agriculture, energy, and livelihood alternatives as substitutes for unsustainable practices (strategy 4): Technical improvement of functioning farms has been shown through the diversification of crops by introducing gardening combined with fish ponds. The encouraging results of these farmers showing reasonable profits encouraged the development of 29 other farms in their respective CLDs, mainly for rice. Studies to evaluate the effectiveness of this model will be carried out starting in April.

Also the effectiveness of the support to fishermen now organized in associations to improve the sustainable offtake of fish and the quality of fishing in the rivers of the Monkoto corridor will be analyzed.

Facilitate access to family planning and health services in communities where health sector partners are active (strategy 6): Sensitization to improve the quality of life of the populations, especially those of the sector of Bianga where we observe severe cases of malnutrition, were carried out. Notably, five meetings were organized with the participation of 989 inhabitants present (among which 511 Bantu men, 121 Bantu women, 208 indigenous men, and 149 indigenous women) to raise awareness on (i) malnutrition, (ii) nature conservation and (iii) environmental policies.

Also, the distribution of contraceptives has been extended to Oshwe where the demand of the population and health staff have been significant. The distribution and monitoring of the use of these products will be done in the second half of FY18.

April 2018 7

2.2 Implementation and Results

a. Biodiversity Conservation and Combating Wildlife Trafficking

(1) Summary of key results.

Table 1: Summary of key results for biodiversity conservation and combating wildlife trafficking

Current year

Selected Indicators (Standard/Custom) Actual as On Annual Actual Result Percentage of Target Target Annual Target Y/N Number of people receiving USG-supported 200 80 (74 men, 6 40 % N training in natural resources management and/or women) biodiversity conservation (disaggregated by gender) Number incidents of poaching detected in field 0.2 0.30 50 % Y (poachers, camps, spent ammunition, snares) per km patrol effort Proportion of Illegally Killed Elephants (PIKE) - # of 80% 0% 0 % Y illegally killed elephants divided by the total number of carcasses encountered per year for site Number of incidences of illegal logging in PAs 5 2 60 % Y Abundance and distribution of elephant 0.054 Complete data Complete data under Complete populations under analysis analysis data under Watsi Kengo analysis 291 (206-411) elephants (6,722km2) (CV 17.5%)

Mondjoku 294 (464-187) elephants (4,644km2) (CV 23.4%) Yokelelu surveyed by WCS: 169 (95% c.l. 77-375) elephants Abundance and distribution of great apes’ 0.19 – 0.5 Complete data Complete data under Complete populations (disaggregated by spp. where under analysis analysis data possible) under Watsi Kengo analysis 3,825 (3,052- 4,518) bonobos (5856km2) CV 9.8%

Mondjoku 1,358 (893- 2,065) bonobos (4,200km2) (CV 21.1%) Yokelelu 2773 (95% c.l. 2077-3703) bonobos Overall and relevant sub-scores on Protected Area 60% NA NA NA management effectiveness - PAMETT* [developed with key informants] Number of hectares of biological significance 4,843,300 4,670,493 96.43 % Y and/or natural resources under improved management as a result of USG assistance Prevention: proportion of critical habitat (in terms 35% 20 % 57.14 % Y of hectares) for elephants/apes that is being effectively patrolled Number of kilometers patrolled 30,000 km 12773,3 km 42.58 % N Number of apprehensions made while patrolling 200 25 12,5 % Y % of patrols informed by intelligence 15% 5% 33,33 % N Prosecution: Proportion of intercepted wildlife a) 20% a) 16 % a) 80 % a) Y crime cases that are a) prosecuted, b) sentenced b) 20% b) 0 % b) % b) N and c) publicized (disaggregated by poachers, c) 20% c) 0 % c) % c) N traffickers or middle-men)

Intermediate Result 2: Biodiversity threats in targeted forest landscapes mitigated

Strengthen Protected Area (PA) management capacity (Strategy 1)

Each consortium partner contributed to the protection of SNP’s biodiversity by identifying priority conservation zones and wildlife distribution and abundance (via biomonitoring), building law enforcement capacity and combating wildlife traffic through training of ecoguards and improving logistics and communication, as well as strengthening local constituencies.

Key Results: Reinforced integrity of the PA, improved management capacity, improved skills among PA management and staff in alignment with their mandate

Patrol support

The UGPNS and partners continued to provide the six sector stations with the necessary equipment, supplies, rations and oversight. WWF and ICCN supported and coordinated

April 2018 9 the overall anti-poaching activities in the Park, while ZSM and WCS specifically focused on anti-poaching throughout the areas where the majority of their research is taking place. More specifically, ZSM contributed to missions organized throughout the Watsi Kengo and parts of the Mondjoku sectors, while WCS concentrated on the Lokofa zone that is situated in the northern part of the southern Block.

Over the past few years, USAID’s CAFEC program has been virtually the sole funding source directed towards crucial anti-poaching activities throughout the park. Since FY17, three other sources of funding joined CAFEC's efforts, allowing members of the consortium to increase their support to ICCN patrols required protect the park. In particular, the increase in patrol rations meant that ICCN was able to increase the number of person-days in the park. In FY17, funds allowed the deployment of 190 patrols, totaling 16,835 person-days and 25,016 km of patrols completed, while in this half of FY18, already 102 patrols have been conducted, for an effort of 11,364 person/days and 12,773.33 km of patrols. Many patrols are now targeting poaching activities based on intelligence gathered from local communities and other informal intelligence networks. The table below shows the patrol effort observed.

Table 2: Patrol details by Sector

Station Number of Number Number of Distance Number of Man-days patrol of patrol nights (km) hours days Anga 12 135 123 1658,35 1074,39 1544 Equipe Mobile 2 57 55 1130,88 397,25 813 Mondjoku 16 240 224 2123,93 1975,32 1613 Monkoto 19 278 259 1597,22 3245,61 2179 Mundja 18 236 218 1969,75 1855,46 2036 Watsikengo 30 292 262 3704,97 2572,47 2477 Yokelelu 5 67 62 588,24 437,05 702 Total 102 1305 1203 12773,33 11557,55 11364

Focusing their program in the Watsi Kengo Sector, ZSM’s contribution to law enforcement complements those of the Unité de Gestion PNS (UGPNS) managing patrols originating from the six park stations.

ZSM continued in FY2018 to strengthen 3 strategic patrol posts, Etate, Lotulo and Biondo-Biondo, and provide the necessary oversight and semi-annual stocks of equipment, supplies, rations, and medical stipends. In each patrol post, ZSM trained guards to organize patrols, navigate uncharted forests, monitor wildlife, collect data and report findings, and administer patrol posts. Additionally, ZSM provided the Watsi Kengo Station the means to conduct 7 motorized patrols annually to reach the remote, lawless Dare-Dare region, located 300 km upriver. Thus far, 3 long-distance patrols have occurred in FY2018.

ZSM supported 24 patrols in the Watsi Kengo sector. However, this number is approximately 30% lower than in Quarter 2 of FY2017. Specifically for Biondo-Biondo Sub-station, supported by CAFEC and USFWS, patrols have operated at half capacity thus far this FY, and guard training for the sub-station is six months behind the grant schedule. These shortages are primarily due to delays in recruitment of new guards. (See Section 2.4, Challenges.) Combined, patrols apprehended 34 poachers, destroyed 61 camps, and confiscated 766 snares – again approximately 30% below FY2017 results.

WCS assessed and improved the effectiveness of the ecoguard patrols in the Lokofo block that covers 2,643 km2 (Figure 1), the ecoguards are based in two patrol posts (Lokofa and Bekongo).

A target of eight patrols per month, each composed of 15 ecoguards deployed for 14 days, had been set, because of the delay of funds, only 4 patrols were conducted this fiscal year. WCS has also ordered 200 sets of equipment for the ICCN rangers (boots, raincoats, trousers, etc.). They have already been delivered to Kinshasa and will be sent to Salonga in May 2018.

For the totality of the patrols, human presence and poaching indicators were tracked to determine the movements of poachers, identify ‘poaching hot spots’ and assist ICCN in planning their subsequent patrols - as well as their overall surveillance strategy. During the various patrols, 2,717 traps and 221 poaching camps were identified and destroyed. (See Figures 1).

April 2018 11

Fig. 1: Patrol coverage using a 1 km grid (right)

Additionally, the ecoguards seized 110 items illegally used within the park (spears, machetes, firearms, canoes and nets). The number of incidents of poaching detected in field (camps, spent ammunition, snares) per km patrolled was 0.3, higher than in FY17 with an encounter rate of 0,028 in the same period.

Guard training

In this first semester, the UGPNS continued to support the training initiatives for ecoguards from the partners, while programming paramilitary and judicial police officers’ formations for the second half of FY18. In tandem with the 1,000 km2 re-survey of a section of the Watsi Kengo survey (above), ZSM completed the first phase of biomonitoring training for 8 guards to develop an on-site ICCN biomonitoring team. The second training phase will take place in April 2018.

In order to better assess patrol reports and better direct patrols based on SMART data, ZSM provided site-specific training to 3 patrol post leaders (3 days total) to improve data collection and quality of reports. Furthermore, ZSM trained 2 research staff in SMART data entry in order to accelerate reporting for remote patrol posts. Guard literacy classes at the Etate Patrol Post continue (in response to a 60% illiteracy rate among the guard force in the SNP); in FY2018, class frequency has dramatically increased five-fold over FY2017. The combination of UGPNS and ZSM-supported patrols makes Watsi Kengo the most patrolled sector within the SNP.

Community outreach

Within CAFEC Strategy 1, improvements to park management capacity include activities geared toward the park’s constituency, so that communities improve their standard of living while becoming allies in the effort to reduce hunting. The villages bordering the park are geographically isolated from commercial centers due to large expanses of swamplands that impede access and travel; they have traditionally relied on hunting, fishing and small-scale agriculture. Reciprocal interactions and positive relationships with local communities are the essence of creating intelligence networks (for law enforcement to work effectively). Mutually for Etate and Lotulo Patrol Posts, arrangements with the local community have resulted in a year-around, consistent source of food/rations. (See success story.)

To augment the local economy and reliably obtain guard rations, ZSM has established a guaranteed market with local villages whereby ZSM has agreed to purchase all guard rations for two patrol posts directly from a village consortium. We expect that at the end of FY18, Tompoko and Watsi villages will obtain over $10,000 in total market income.

Direct benefits to communities not only improve standard of living in the long-term and increase their capacity and self-reliance, but they foster positive attitudes towards the Park. The community relationship with Etate continues to help maintain a near-zero poaching level in the Etate surveillance zone. At Patrol Post Etate, the local fishermen continue to act as important sentinels for monitoring local traffic along the Salonga River (park border).

Combating wildlife traffic

Combating wildlife traffic is a priority in FY18. Focus has been the involvement of stakeholders outside the park. to get a grip on the trade of wildlife products that leave the park towards the large cities. The ecoguards are therefore stepping up their actions in the buffer zone and the national and local administration beyond the buffer zone.

Several stations, especially the Anga and Munja stations, who face the incursion of bushmeat traffickers into the southern block of the park, seized large stocks of bushmeat as shown in the following table. These stocks were incinerated in front of the poachers and made known to everyone.

Table 3: Summary of seizures and locations

Species Part Qty Duiker Piece 151 Blue duiker full 21 Giant pangolin Piece and skin 03 Bushpig Piece 18 Panther Skin 01 Porcupine full 04

Photos: Bushmeat seized and incinerated

These actions have had the immediate effect of reducing stocks on stalls in nearby local markets. At Dekesse, the price of the portion has tripled. This situation challenges us to accelerate the process of developing alternatives in the sensitive areas or communities contiguous to the SNP.

April 2018 13 Setting up meetings with the different provincial governments who share the PNS has been slow to date. As a result, one of the UGPNS main missions this first semester was to engage with the various administrative authorities and cultivate their support for the park’s conservation initiatives. One of encouraging commitments received has been an agreement to participate in surveillance activities along the main transport corridors and assist in the fight against the bushmeat trafficking.

Key Result - Quality of data available on biodiversity and/or socio-economics improved

Ecological surveys are an essential component of effective law enforcement as they provide a scientifically sound and a quantitative view of where animals are concentrated and where poaching occurs.

ZSM has accrued essential biological baseline data about bonobo and elephant distribution and abundance in the Watsi Kengo and Mondjoku Sectors (35% of the park, >11,000 km2 combined) of the Salonga National Park (SNP). In FY2017, ZSM had completed surveys in both sectors (Annual Report and ZSM MOV FY16 and FY17) and completed preliminary analyses in FY2018. The following table presents biomonitoring results in the Watsi Kengo and Mondjoku Sectors from the update analyses for FY2018

Table 4: Biomonitoring results in the Watsi Kengo and Mondjoku Sectors

Sign 95% Individual 95%CI Area Population Total # Species Density CI %CV Density L (km2) Estimate Effort Obs. Signs/km2 U (ind/km2) Watsi Kengo Bonobo 67.558 53.91 79.795 9.8 0.653 5,856.30 3,825.010 1,379.097 2,153 Elephant 74.085 52.439 104.67 17.5 0.043 6,721.90 291.223 1,379.097 286 Mondjoku Bonobo 33.448 22.002 50.848 21.1 0.323 4,200.200 1,358.228 1,081.566 991 Elephant 108.34 68.745 170.74 23.4 0.063 4,643.600 294.203 1,081.566 226

In the Watsi Kengo Sector, bonobos occur continuously throughout without a break in distribution. The population size of 3,825 nest-building bonobos in the sector is possibly the largest continuous population thus far described for the species, marking the SNP the species’ premiere conservation site. FY 2018 analyses of the Mondjoku Sector show fragmentation of the bonobo populations and about one-half density of the Watsi Kengo area, totaling about 1,360 nest building individuals. ZSM estimates the elephant population at 291 for Watsi Kengo individuals and 294 for Mondjoku. Elephant distribution in the Watsi Kengo Sector is nearly continuous up to the farthest southeast corner of the sector. Approximately, the same elephant distribution pattern occurs in Mondjoku. An area of 1,800 km2 in the southeast of both sectors (combined) is nearly devoid of elephants. (Maps provided in AR FY2017.)

Overall human pressure on the Watsi Kengo and Mondjoku Sectors is relatively high, 0.85 signs/km (SD = 0.07) and 0.8 signs/km (SD = 0.07), respectively, especially in the southeastern corner near the Sankuru Province. The distribution of human signs is generally a negative image of the elephant distribution in both sectors. The area showing the least poaching is the Etate surveillance area where ZSM has invested over 15 years of anti-poaching support and community outreach. (See maps provided in AR FY2017.)

In order to obtain population sizes for the entire park, the ZSM survey results will be combined in 2018 with results from other surveys conducted by other partners (MPI, WCS). Furthermore, these data will be used as the basis to draft a biomonitoring strategy for the SNP in the future. WWF organized a workshop in February 2018 to lay the groundwork for strategy development.

In FY2018, ZSM has resurveyed a 1,000 km2 section of the Watsi Kengo Sector in order to document population changes over time specifically in an area where poaching pressure is low and has the least effect on bonobo distribution. Analyses are underway. Moreover, note that the resurvey was part of a training for ICCN park guard biomonitoring team (see below).

By the end of 2017, two field missions were completed: one between 20th September 28th October 28, and the second was implemented between the 15th of November 15 - 4th December 2017 (Figure 4). Two teams completed 24% of the transects (and 26% of the corridor, or 2 575 km²) (54 transects total- 21 in the area near Monkoto (42 km) and 33 (66 km) in the extreme southeast of the corridor, totaling 107.7km of transects, plus the associated guided recces and travel recces.

April 2018 15

Fig. 2: WCS survey design in 2008 and the distribution of bonobo, elephants and human activity in the Salonga corridor, (Maisels et al. 2009)

Fig. 3: Corridor survey design, and the areas of completed transects (red squares), 2017

The first results from these missions show an encounter rate of 1, 79 bonobo nests / km and 0.1 elephant dung piles / km for (only 11 dung piles in total to date). The whole of the area at the extreme eastern end of the corridor had very few elephant or bonobo sign, but they were present at a distance of about 20 kilometers into the corridor (Fig. 6). The field teams recorded human activities throughout the whole of the two areas surveyed to date (Figure 6).

Fig. 4: Distribution of bonobos, elephants, ungulates and human activity, (based on transect data) in two sectors of the corridor surveyed in late 2017

The third field mission, comprising three teams, was launched on 9 April 2017. The mission will last one month and will cover 102 transects, thus completing the area located between the two ones already inventoried. The final field mission is planned for June, to complete the northwestern end of the corridor. Analysis of the whole dataset will then be carried out, and by the end of CARPE III, the results and the final report will be available.

April 2018 17

In this reporting period, WCS has continued to record elephants and other large mammal (leopard, sitatunga, etc.) data in and around Bekalikali “bai”. The most important reason to monitor this important Bai is to ensure law enforcement.

The monitoring consists of camera traps located around and beside the bai, which can capture images of elephants, and any other species that passes. Monitoring is continuous over the year and every month the pictures of the cameras are down-loaded and the batteries are changed.

Fig. 5: Locations of the camera traps around Bekalikali bai

In FY18 to date, the biomonitoring teams collected the data four times. Unfortunately, of the 11 original cameras (beginning of FY18), only 3 cameras are still functional. Eight have malfunctioned due to termite attack. None have been stolen, suggesting that poachers either are not interested in them or that there are very few poachers in this block.

The species recorded by the cameras during this reporting period are: forest elephant, bonobo, bongo, sitatunga, Weyn’s duiker, bay duiker, black-fronted duiker, yellow- backed duiker, red river hog, red-tailed monkey, aardvark, and African civet.

Socio-economic monitoring

The WWF in the framework of the PARCCS project funded by the European Union, conducted wellbeing surveys throughout the Salonga landscape. The data collected takes into account the important elements of the BNS. Convergence points and data sharing are being studied.

FY17 has experienced a harmonization of actions, approaches and planning. This action continued in FY18 with quarterly meetings and team downhills.

Key Result 3 - Strengthen the governance of the protected area

The General Management Plan was validated at the national level (second level), which is a very important element in the management of the park.

Key result 4 - Conservation constituency strengthened: improved support for PA activities and objectives At the request of community leaders, ZSM implemented several educational activities: supporting 5 primary schools and 2 adult literacy classes. The illiteracy rate in the region is as high as 80%, especially among women. ZSM continues to provide assistance in the form of teacher salaries (ZSM cost-share), books, materials, and blackboards. Without ZSM support, these schools would not exist. The income from the village market (above) enables villagers to send their children on to secondary schools in the region.

In 2014, WCS started to provide a financial support for schooling of 20 students including 15 girls and 5 boys from Yaelima villages in the park, at Dekese town outside the park. This, albeit small scale benefit, will gradually contribute to attracting future generations outside of the park, and provide the skills sets necessary for effective livelihoods in towns around Salonga.

In 2018, WCS supported 19 students including 14 girls and 5 boys from Yaelima villages. One girl got married and couldn’t attend to the school. Now on, one of the students (a girl) pursues her study in a high school called Institut Supérieur de Développement Rural (ISDR) in Dekese Town.

April 2018 19

Another community support initiative is the construction of two health centers in the Bianga sector. Preparations are complete. The construction was awaiting USAID approval for the EMMP. Now that it's done, the construction site will start this second half of FY18.

It is important to note that, due to budget constraints and strategic reasons, it has been decided to cancel the construction of the WCS office and reallocate the funds to the health centers of Sambwankoy and Mangilombe. Pending the strategy of education and environmental awareness being developed, with the strengthening of staff (4 rural development facilitators recruited), we have for awareness actions, targeted students, authorities, members of communities. To this end, we worked with 33 schools in the areas of Monkoto and Oshwe. We sensitized 6683 people including students and teachers. Other concrete actions accompanied the awareness messages such as the creation of school orchards. Three nurseries in 3 schools were do far established for the production of tree seedlings that will be distributed in other schools. Our outreach work also expanded in communities where 355 people including 279 men and 26 women were sensitized. We did not hesitate to take advantage of International Women's Day to raise the awareness of 435 people including 374 students, 57 women and 4 men from Monkoto on gender and the role of women in conservation. The supervision of women has continued through the empowerment of women. Women, under the facilitation of WWF experts, have identified income-generating activities. Together with the CLD representatives from Monkoto, the women, including women from the environmental women's club and ecoguards' wives, talked about the role of women in the community. It was an opportunity to educate men about the support they must offer to the woman. In order to also attain the teachers and students of the higher institutes within the cities of our landscape (and not only focus on the students of Kinshasa) as their support is important, a forum was organized in Monkoto and Boendé which linked academic activities and conservation with a focus on the preservation of the SNP. These meetings also brought together the authorities of the different urban centers as well as other people interested in the developed themes.

b. Climate Change Mitigation

(1) Summary of Key Results

Table 5: Summary of key results for Climate Change Mitigation

Current year

Selected Indicators (Standard/Custom) Macro zones Actual as Annual Actual Percentage On Target Target Result of Annual Y/N Target Number of people receiving USG- supported training in global climate 89 (32 men, All landscape 300 29,67 % N change as a result of USG assistance 57 women) (disaggregated by gender) (a)120,000 (a) 120,000 100 % Y Amount (ha) of forested area (a) proposed, (b) planning initiated, (c) (b) 120,000 (b) 66770 44.36 % N All landscape informally recognized, and (d) officially (c) 120,000 (c) 0 NA NA registered as community forestry area (d) 172807 (d) 0 NA NA Salonga NP NA NA NA NA Monkoto Corridor NA NA NA NA Lotoi-Lokoro NA NA NA NA Rate of forest cover change (loss and gain) CBNRM DRC at landscape and/or macrozone scale SODEFOR (Oshwe) NA NA NA NA ERZ Total for all NA NA NA NA landscape Quantity of GHG emissions, measured in metric tons of CO2 equivalent, reduced, All landscape 3711078 NA NA NA sequestered, and/or avoided Number of households adopting alternative sustainable practices that were All landscape 100 39 39% N demonstrated. Number of people reached by family All landscape 2500 NA NA NA planning messaging

Intermediate Result 1: Targeted forest landscapes sustainably managed.

Strengthen the implementation of land use management plans (Strategy 2)

Key Result - Local governance structure in place to implement LUP

In FY17, discussions on community forestry has started with communities of Lofombo in the south of the corridor. Subsequently, these communities have expressed they would

April 2018 21 want WWF to support them in the establishment of community forestry concessions. In FY18, a prospecting mission went there confirming the presence of several species including elephants, bonobos, buffaloes, etc. It was therefore proposed to organize wildlife inventories in the corridor in order to estimate the faunal diversity. The results of these inventories, which are in progress (see above), will be decisive for the choice of the status that will be reserved for this part of the corridor. Depending on the results it is envisaged to move forward in the second half of the year to support communities in formalizing their community forests.

In the northern part of the corridor, after sensitization on the importance of forest concessions, the communities marked their adhesions to the processes. Thus the experts of the UGPNS have trained 10 local cartographers. The latter function as a pool of local experts who can help their respective communities in the management of the forest concessions that will be granted in the future. Currently, all the teams are deployed in supporting communities in carrying out participatory mapping. We hope for the next semester to help in the constitution of the files which will be deposited at once in the governorate of the province of Tshuapa.

Key Result - Improved capacity of local authorities and communities to implement LUP Involving the authorities

At the beginning of FY18, a mission of the UGPNS visited three of the four provinces that share the Salonga landscape Tshuapa (Boende), Mai Ndombe (Inongo, Oshwe), Kasaï (Tshikapa, Dekesse). The objective of this mission was to sensitize high provincial authorities on the need for their involvement to preserve the integrity of the PNS and better support the surrounding communities in the rational management of their spaces and the development of alternatives to improve the living conditions of the populations. For this purpose, ongoing projects have being presented to them through several information and awareness-raising workshops inviting governors, provincial ministers, members of provincial cabinets, judicial authorities and representatives of local NGOs. Most participants seemed to be on board to participate and commit to community forestry, river monitoring and surveillance of SNP access routes.

In synergy with other initiatives implemented in the landscape, including the project SAINES (FAO and CRS) under European Union funding which is in full operation in the South-Eastern periphery (Lomela and Kole), concerted actions will be organized for this second semester in Sankuru province including sensitization of local authorities.

We already organized capacity-building workshops with the objective of upgrading the knowledge of provincial, territorial and sectoral authorities on issues related to land management, natural resources and the community forestry process. The other part of the collaboration with the authorities (national, provincial and territorial and sectoral), is their integration in the implementation of the activities as in the follow-up of the different projects, such as the community forestry process, participatory mapping and other processes.

Involving civil society

The involvement of civil society in this past semester has been twofold. First, the planned activities were presented to ensure civil society is aware and feels part of proposed workplan. Secondly, as part of the activities are planned to be executed by local organizations, there were therefore made aware of the bidding process. Lastly, Civil society members also took part in the various trainings organized in Monkoto on participatory cartography and the management of natural resources.

Involving SCAEMPS

As the collaboration framework is well defined among all CARPE partners, we participated in the various workshops, the first of which focused on the harmonization of "LSA" data, and the second was the presentation of the platform developed by the WRI. This first test of launching this platform allowed us to realize the collaboration that exists between the different implementation partners who share all these data.

Promote sustainable agriculture, energy, and livelihood alternatives as substitutes for unsustainable practices (Strategy 4)

Key Result - Culturally appropriate and valuable alternatives and actors are identified

Impact of our community model

During this third phase of the CAFEC project, several activities were carried out to support the neighboring communities of the PNS both for the development of alternatives through agriculture (pilot farms) and for the improvement of local governance. In addition, awareness-raising actions aimed at changing people's behavior from the point of view of natural resource management and improving their diet have been carried out and some are underway. It was therefore necessary at the end of this phase to evaluate the effectiveness of our actions to make improvements in the future phase of CARPE and for projects funded by other partners.

Thus, three studies were recommended: i) model or Pilot Farms, ii) capacity building of CLDs, and iii) sensitization and education to install behavioral change. The first semester allowed us to define some prerequisites for these studies such as mapping and geo- referencing of farms and CLDs to facilitate the deployment of consultants in the field. Consecutively, Terms of References were developed, and the application was launched.

Fishermen's capacities

Faced with the multiple human-wildlife and ecoguard-men conflicts coming from the regular incursions of the populations in the PNS, it seemed necessary to review the whole fishing system in the landscape. The Monkoto Corridor was chosen as a pilot area. For this purpose, prerequisites should be organized. Also, the fishermen's association was

April 2018 23 restructured, to allow to identify the real actors of the fishing in the corridor. The recruitment of an expert is planned for the second semester to diagnose the fishing sector and outline the main areas of support for the fishermen.

Facilitate access to family planning and health services in communities where health sector partners are active (Strategy 6)

Key Result - Communities with unmet demand benefit from access to family planning and comprehensive services

Malnutrition, caused by poor sanitation and eating habits, is a major problem in the Bianga sector of Salonga. Tackling these issues is a necessity for building local constituencies to support conservation efforts. During the last three CAFEC fiscal years, WCS partnered with the National NGO Groupe de Recherche et d’Appui aux Interventions Intégrées de la Nutrition en Santé (GRAINES) to combat malnutrition in the Bianga sector.

In FY18, WCS kept on building awareness of people from Bianga sector on malnutrition resilience. Five (5) awareness meetings took place in 5 villages of Bianga sector - 2 Bantu villages and 3 Pygmy villages. 989 people attended to these meetings, among which 719 men and 270 women. In addition, 357 pygmies attended among which 208 men and 149 women.

The meetings focused on (i) how to detect the signs of the beginning of malnutrition disease, (ii) how locally to treat the malnutrition with local diet, and (iii) how to avoid malnutrition by introducing the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) approach.

Outreach material on malnutrition resilience were designed and presented to the audience during the meetings.

Additionally, the communities from 5 villages were sensitized, among which 2 Bantu villages (Mangilombe and Bombelenge) and 3 Pygmy villages (Sambwankoy, Bongwandjale and Inkandja). All in all, 989 people attended to these meetings, including 511 Bantu men, 208 Pygmy men, 121 Bantu women and 149 Pygmy women.

Family planning

Demography is a major factor in the increasing pressure on forests, as well as the way families look at their livelihood options. Both the small-urban centers around the Park and the villages within the Monkoto Corridor are all growing. The corridor in particular is a concern as it lies directly between the two blocks of SNP, making population growth one of the major concerns when planning to secure the Park boundaries and manage for future encroachment into SNP. The CAFEC team is addressing the challenges related to population growth by focusing on educating communities on the benefits of family planning.

To follow, eleven health centers, (in the villages of Imompako, Isaka, Boangi, Isunja, Ingundu, Ndomba, Isenga, Yongo, Bokele, Wafanya and Monkoto) receive inputs from WWF through the provision of education sessions on the benefits of family planning, as well as the supply of contraceptives to local populations, (mainly women). Monthly follow-ups are organized to monitor behavioral change and stocks of contraceptives.

2.3 STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION AND INVOLVEMENT

UGPNS At the Park level, the UGPNS (Unité de Gestion du Parc National Salonga) is composed of the Park Manager, Assistant Park Manager, Financial Administrator and Managers of Law Enforcement, Infrastructure, Science and Research, Community Conservation and Rural Development. This group makes the day to day management decisions, and the positions are shared between WWF and ICCN staff. (For example, the SNP Manager is WWF staff, while the Assistant Manager is from ICCN.)

Unikin Forum To raise conservation awareness countrywide, a Forum has been set up at the University of Kinshasa (UniKin), Monkoto and Boendé which is co-sponsored by the Ministry of Environment. The aim is to promote CAFEC’s activities at national level and discuss environmental issues in depth with institutional partners and students. Currently, sessions take place on a monthly basis where students, CAFEC partners and other experts from various fields share their experiences.

During the recent celebration of World Wildlife Day, UniKin and CAFEC - with the support of WWF management - organized a major event that was attended by numerous experts of the university, CITES and WWF. This event was well attended and represented an opportunity to better expose the CAFEC program to students.

Other partnerships

ZSM provides around 48% cost-share received from the following private sector partners: The US Fish and Wildlife Service, Felburn Foundation, private donors, Association for Zoo and Aquarium member zoos, and the Wildlife Conservation Network.

In addition to the activities funded thanks to USAID, WCS has secured complementary funds from USFWS until September 30, 2018 for conserving bonobos in Lokofa block. Besides, since December 2016, an MOU has been signed between the University of Leeds (United Kingdom) and WCS, which aimed to monitor carbon in 9 plots located in the primary forest (Nguma) and 4 plots located the in secondary forest (Betamba) of Lokofa block. These studies are an opportunity for building the capacities of the local communities and the ICCN ecoguards in carbon biomonitoring, as well as raising awareness on climate change.

April 2018 25 The results from the last mission organized in March 2018, highlighted that the average biomass stored in the primary forest was 314,18 tons per ha. As for the secondary forest, the analyses are being performed and will be shared as soon as they are completed.

Fig.6: Location of the plots where the carbon assessment were organized.

OXFAM

Oxfam is an international confederation of 18 organizations (in Mexico, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Denmark, Mexico, United States, Mexico, Mexico, Hong Kong, India, Mexico, Mexico, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Country and Quebec) working together with partners and local communities in more than 90 countries. In the DRC, Oxfam works with tens of displaced people in the East of the country and works with communities in stable areas of the DRC, for example in the southern area of the SNP, where they aim to strengthen local resilience and livelihoods as a means of economic recovery and sustainable development. Oxfam works with others to overcome poverty and suffering and focuses its priorities in the sector of water-hygiene and sanitation, the situation of women, and citizen participation in the care and management of their environment as a pledge of development. Oxfam works on community protection as well as community building for agricultural revival and economic empowerment in the target communities. Oxfam is also working on the development of value chains for the most common agricultural products.

ISCO

ISCO is a non-profit organization based in the province of Venice, Veneto region in Italy. Its offices are in Mestre. Active since 2000 in the DRC, it carries out community development activities in rural areas to improve the capacities of farmers' structures to sustainably manage themselves institutionally and technically. ISCO promotes the main agricultural crops (food and perennial crops) of its various areas of intervention, strengthens the commercial sector and realizes rural infrastructure, including the rehabilitation of roads and rural tracks, construction of depots, and the construction and rehabilitation of bridges.

AASD

AASD, " Action d’Aide Sanitaire et de Développement aux plus Démunis", works in the biological corridor of the National Park of Salonga mainly in the territory of Monkoto, province of Tshuapa. AASD supports local communities living in the PNS corridor, mainly women, mother-girls, and indigenous peoples, in literacy, income-generating activities, improved nutrition and family planning.

Project SAINES (FAO and CRS) under European Union funding

The project “Actions de Sécurité Alimentaires, Informations, Nutrition et Environnement au Sankuru (SAINES)” is implemented by FAO and CRS with funding from the European Union. This project aims to sustainably and structurally reduce food and nutrition insecurity among children (<5 years), and pregnant and lactating women. Food and nutritional insecurity is among the most worrying of concerns in the former province of Kasaï Orientale, including the regions of Sankuru, with a chronic malnutrition rate of 46.1%. Since 2007, cyclical food insecurity has been monitored in the DRC using the Integrated Food Security Classification Framework (IPC) method. The territories of the Sankuru region have regularly been placed in the "under pressure" and "crisis" classes, as well as other similar territories in the central and western parts of the country. These areas are characterized by their isolation, and face chronic poverty and malnutrition, and child mortality rates are frequently above emergency and intervention thresholds in these areas.

2.4 Implementation Challenges, Risks and Opportunities

Challenges and risks

The SNP continues to be faced with considerable logistical challenges. Not only is general accessibility difficult, but sizeable efforts are required to transport equipment and

April 2018 27 people in order to implement activities in the field. To be able to tackle these challenges, significant financial resources are also required. On the other hand, the development of road infrastructure to facilitate greater access to the SNP could conversely also lead to an increase in hunting and poaching activities.

To ensure the right balance of sustainable economic development and biodiversity conservation, skilled and adequate human resources and considerable funds are needed. Although ICCN staff management has improved, irregularity in financial flows still cause long delays in the implementation of activities. These delays include those with the first FY18 USAID obligation and construction approvals, which led to the postponement of the construction of health centers in Mangilombe and Sambwankoy, (i.e. Iyeke pygmy village).

We can also evocate field risk when the teams carried out surveys (risks of meeting with poachers) and the end the current CARPE phase are the biggest challenges that we faced during the implementation of the FY18.

In the other hand, as of October 2017, ICCN declared that unregistered recruits (Nouvelles Unités) could no longer legally participate in patrols. Delays in recruitment and training have resulted in a drastic drop in number of guards available. For example, despite ZSM’s continuing support, the three strategic patrols posts witnessed a 65% decline in the number of patrol guards. Hence, the overall patrol performance of ZSM- supported patrols has resulted in 30% fewer patrols. As an interim solution to remedy this shortage, ZSM and the ICCN Conservator (Watsi Kengo Station) have combined Etate and Lotulo patrols and solicited guard reinforcements from the UGPNS.

Opportunities

Over 14 years of USAID funding has resulted in massive improvements in the management and infrastructure of the SNP. The SNP, noted as a no-man’s land and poaching haven prior to 2003, had virtually no patrols, and the status of its wildlife was unknown. The park existed only on paper. Fourteen years later, in FY2017 alone, there were over 190 patrols in the SNP. Survey teams will have walked over 7,000 km to survey the park’s vast area to establish a detailed and scientifically valid record of where populations of key species, such as the bonobo and forest elephant, occur. Already we can say that the SNP is the bonobo’s priority conservation site, likely holding over 40% of the world’s population. We can claim that it is the only place left in DRC where the forest elephant, if protected, can recover and establish a self-sustaining population. Already we can assert that this protected forest – for its sheer size alone -- plays a major role to mitigate global climate change. With these improvements and data in hand, who would not want to support this near pristine forest ecosystem? As the USAID Salonga consortium work goes forward, these claims are evermore substantiated, gaining traction and attention of other funders such as the EU, US Fish & Wildlife Service, EU and KFW, and private donors. The vital groundwork laid by USAID will continue to attract funds and provide opportunities for this globally significant site.

2.5 PMP Update

Despite the fact that ZSM trained two research staff and an office manager in advanced computer skills and SMART data entry in order to reduce delays in patrol reporting from remote patrol posts, and also the improvements in equipment to facilitate the transmission of information, much remains to be done in order to cover all the needs of this great park.

3. INTEGRATION OF CROSSCUTTING ISSUES

3.1 Gender Equality and Women Empowerment

Although the representation of women in ICCN ranks is still weak, initiatives have been underway to enlist and involve more women in decision-making roles within their communities and other structures that can highlight their skills and value. Paying increased attention to gender equality and female empowerment, WCS has been carrying out ecological surveys in the Salonga corridor with the support of local community representatives, both from the Bantu and IP communities. WCS also recruited and trained ten community representatives – 7 men and 3 women, (including one man and one- woman IP.) They will work as GPS trackers and field-perpendicular-distance- measurement assistants in the WCS biomonitoring teams in the Salonga corridor.

In addition, in order to build constituency in the Yaelima sector, WCS continues to support school fees for 14 Girls and 5 boys from Yaelima at Dekese, a town located outside of the National Park. In 2017, one of the students received her baccalaureate diploma and is currently pursuing her high school diploma at ISDR in Dekese Territory. The longer term aim here is to encourage people in Yaelima to move outside of the park, (i.e. voluntary relocation.)

ZSM adult literacy classes teach 48 women and 58 men. We note that this is a reversal in the former sex ratio of students where women outnumbered men. Important support is also provided to primary schools in the park’s buffer zone, reaching 450 students (50- 50% sex ratio)

Likewise, WWF continues to support women through its literacy program. To enable women to take on important roles in their communities, women clubs for the protection of the environment were created and received support from SNP staff. These women have begun important outreach work in their own communities. Similarly, meetings to identify income-generating activities (IGAs) were organized, and the manufacture of soap is one IGA that was launched and has benefited many women. These initiatives are also aimed at generating funds to enable young girls to continue their studies, as well as take part in community activities.

April 2018 29 3.2 Microenterprise

Given the general complexity and remoteness of the Salonga landscape, the absence of any banks and the instability of internet and telephone networks, the SNP is a difficult place to make financial transactions of any kind and these challenges combine to impede the swift execution of many program activities. The general shortage of cash means it’s generally difficult to do business, develop IGAs or support new enterprises of any type.

WWF has in place well-established procedures and standards to ensure the secure supply of funds that also restricts the maximum amount that can be transferred per month. This means that meeting monthly financial requirements, including the transfer of funds for program activities, as well as salaries and performance bonuses for the ecoguards, is also often challenging. And without cash on hand, it is challenging to launch new business endeavors – or support existing ones.

Despite the collaboration of the Provincial Authorities (Tshuapa Governor), the Salonga National Park Management Unit (UGPNS) and the WWF National Direction in contacting several banks to research alternative possibilities to transfer funds to the field for the salary payments of over 300 ecoguards, any bank accepts assist with the payment of the salaries and bonuses for ecoguards.

3.3 Science, Technology, and Innovation Impacts

To ensure improved communications across this vast and disconnected landscape, SNP at all six stations has been equipped with solar powered V-Sat internet connections. As noted above, this has tremendously improved communications between Monkoto HQ and the sector stations, and has also improved management of surveillance, surveys, logistics and awareness raising missions. And perhaps importantly, it has greatly facilitated data transfer between SNP stations.

In FY2018, ZSM provided training to 8 ICCN park guards in biomonitoring. Training involves advanced use of maps, i.e., concepts of different geographic coordinate systems and how to use them together with compass navigation. Once mastered, students learn to use GPS units to find and navigate to locations, and to geographically pinpoint positions and/or observations. Later, students learn how to collect observational data on animal signs, measure distances, record forest types, forest canopy classes, and hydrological variables.

Three ZSM staff received training in spreadsheet use and SMART data entry; the ZSM staff will in turn help train more SNP staff/guards to improve their data entry into SMART. In addition, in order to improve SMART data collection, UGPNS purchased for all field work 30 satellite phones who can be used with cyber-tracker program. These phones can also be used to facilitate communication within the SNP.

Despite this qualitative improvement in communications and overall working conditions, much remains to be done to strengthen communications. Proper equipment alone does not guarantee that good quality information and data will be collected, so capacity building for SNP staff will continue to be essential.

4. MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES

The growing array of donors willing to finance SNP activities has been welcomed by ICCN and is beneficial to support key needs in the SNP. However, the diversity of donor protocols and different reporting formats and schedules has at times slowed down the implementation of a variety of program activities. The need to develop an official procedures manual for the SNP is now critical in order to balance the immediate operational and programmatic needs of SNP while also concurrently satisfying the varied donors requirements and expectations.

In addition, two health centers have to be built. Now the EMMP is approved, the constructions will be completed.

5. ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE

The activities implemented in Salonga are in line with WWF 's various strategies, which interact with a number of national and international structures and are involved in several platforms for reflection and strategy development, drafting of laws and their implementation.

WWF (with Salonga well-represented) participated in several workshops to develop practical guides to facilitate understanding of the decree on community forestry concessions in order to support local communities in the process of granting community forests.

Salonga representatives also participate in SCAEMPS activities through the “Landscape Application” (LSA) tool, which centralizes information on the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo, to support the capacity of decision-makers to understand threats to wildlife and prepare actions with this information. Several partners are involved: WRI, WCS, ICCN, IUCN and the universities.

April 2018 31 In closing, CAFEC partners working in the Salonga landscape all ensure that a respect for the environment is thoroughly woven through all program activities. To follow, environmental impact studies have been completed for all ongoing and planned constructions, including the construction of two health centers in the Bianga sector: Sambwankoy and Mangilombe. The CAFEC partners in the Salonga landscape will continue to ensure all activities are environmentally compliant. The Salonga’s EMMP approved show how the environmental issues is taken seriously.

6. LESSON LEARNED

The continuous harmonization of interventions and approaches among partners working in across the SNP landscape has been very important in the efforts to improve the park’s management to date, and has received further attention since FY17. SNP remain in the phase of defining strategies for each type of activity, (i.e. research, ecological monitoring, surveillance, community involvement, etc.), in order to foster greater cooperation among partners and so make it easier to centralize information and data for improved park management.

To efficiently increase patrol coverage throughout the SNP, anti-poaching patrols originating from strategic locations such as patrol posts and sous stations located within the park, e.g., Biondo-Biondo, are proving to be cost-effective and reduce long travel distances of mobile patrols from the main ICCN stations. If properly manned, supported and reinforced, they have the possibility to act more quickly to urgent threats.

Also, despite having lost several camera traps, their destruction by the termites, was an opportunity for learning how to avoid such problem.

Within the framework of the co-management, it is still virtually impossible to revoke certain guards that have a history of bad conduct and internal poaching. The consortium needs to look more closely into which procedures need to be followed in order for this process to be successful.

Good guard data are indispensable for science as well as park management. The guards circulate in the park more than anyone else. If they take good data, even if they are not aware of the significance of certain findings themselves, these data can and should alert park management and researchers to changes in animal distributions/trends, special sightings of rare species (e.g., hippos recently discovered at Etate), sudden environmental events (massive die-offs, poisonings), and geological features (caves, lakes). Like survey data, these data should be available to scientific inquiry and assessment. Moreover, these data should be objectively studied together with systematic survey data in order to better understand trends in law enforcement, poaching, and animal distribution and migration.

Pic 3: Rare hippopotamus sighting at the Papa Baudouin Bai, Salonga River, SNP, ZSM.

Guard rations purchased locally from neighboring communities (vs. importing food) can both elevate the local economy and standard of living while improving park-community relations. The dollar amount going directly to villages is easily calculated.

During the biomonitoring activities within corridor, the involvement of the local communities in the inventories eased tensions, facilitate the dialogue in the interviews with the members of the community.

7. PLANNED ACTIVITIES FOR NEXT SEMESTER INCLUDING UPCOMING EVENTS

For the upcoming semester, the Salonga Landscape Consortium intends to move forward with planned activities while also continuing to be focus to the recommendations of the CARPE III Mid-Term Evaluation. The enduring success of our actions will depend on the harmonization of approaches and strengthened cohesion among partners in the consortium. Some of the main activities will include: − Continuing the organization of coordination meetings among implementation partners, authorities and communities to ensure harmonization of the various interventions, (e.g. SNP steering committee, CoCoSi, quarterly planning meetings, etc.); − Continue to build capacity for the application of SMART-ER (used for biomonitoring), along with complementary support for field patrols;

April 2018 33 − Organize paramilitary training for new recruits and refresher trainings for current staff to develop fully-trained ecoguards; − Continue the ecological inventories, with a focus on the Salonga (Monkoto) corridor; − Continue to emphasize awareness raising and environmental education for communities; − Continue participatory mapping exercises to enable communities to obtain the title of their community forest concessions and support the development of the ecological continuum; − Continue to support and promote women's empowerment; − Continue to support the development of new income-generating activities; − Continue to support the Family Planning Program; − Build new health centers in Sambwankoy and Mangilombe villages; − Continue the development of integrated agriculture and perma-gardens on family farms; − Promote the conservation of spawning grounds and sustainable fishing along the main waterways of SNP; − Organize training, evaluation, and the re-survey of the Biondo-Biondo surveillance area; − Supervise, provision and reinforce patrol posts in the vulnerable Dare-Dare region; − Ensure all CAFEC activities meet the following criteria: 1) socially and economically viable, 2) scaleable, and 3) contribute to biodiversity conservation.

8. HOW IMPLEMENTING PARTNER HAS ADDRESSED FINDINGS OF THE MIDTERM EVALUATION AND USAID COMMENTS FROM THE LAST REPORT

In line with recommended changes to be made to program activities, CAFEC partners across the Salonga landscape continue to adjust their program activities and approaches. These adjustments follow the nine approaches recommended by USAID such as: community forest concessions, engagement with communities, combating wildlife trade (CWT), land tenure, climate change, sustainable livelihoods, bush meat and protein, SMART and eco-guards.

Also, ZSM altered the funding source for school teacher salaries to be a ZSM-cost share and not CAFEC as was recommended by the USAID mid-term reviewer.

9. LONG TERM SUSTAINABILITY

The aim of the co-management structure of the SNP is to build capacity and ensure the sustainability of all program interventions. As it currently stands, there is a duplication of some positions in the SNP in order to enable WWF to build the capacities of their ICCN colleagues. Training and acquired skills are long-lasting and constitute the most sustainable aspect of the project. For example, ZSM has constructed two wooden buildings on site at the Etate Patrol Post and Research Station which offer long-term possibilities for continuation both as a patrol post and research site (an incentive to outside researchers). Guards rotating through Etate can now read and write. While difficult to measure, there is a greater sense and awareness of biodiversity conservation than 15 years ago, prior to CARPE funding.

Additionally, a cohort of children have received primary education over the past 15 years (school support) that has elevated community capacity and inspired greater community cohesion and support for the park. To ensure the sustainability of this community development work around the SNP, CAFEC will continue to liaise and collaborate with community members, local chiefs, territory chiefs, and local authorities all the way up to the provincial governors. The CAFEC consortium will continue to work to ensure that all stakeholders are informed of, and involved with, the implementation of program activities. Not only is this important to ensure provincial governments' commitment to SNP’s overall conservation approach, but will also facilitate buy-in among multiple stakeholders so program interventions can be scaled up all the way to the provincial level, and then possibly to the national policy level through the SCAEMPS Program.

10. DETAILED REPORTING OF RESULTS

This will be provided as Annex ‘A’ and submitted separately.

11. ANNEXES

Five CAFEC-Salonga “Success Stories” submitted.

April 2018 35 a) Longevity Pays Off: Linking Villages to National Park Protection. Changing people’s minds is never easy. Meeting people’s living needs and supporting national parks are often viewed as opposing goals. Finding the right formula to achieve both takes time and continued investment. Since 2004, the advent of USAID support to the Salonga – Lukenie – Sankuru landscape, a lot has changed to improve living standards for the village of Tompoko in the Salonga National Park buffer zone, the Democratic Republic of Congo. Dimaro Ndombe, school director and farmer, and Mbuta Botuli, village notable (community leader) and fisherman, recount the changes they witnessed in their village over 15 years of enduring USAID support.

Tompoko, a small village of about 400 inhabitants, is cut off from main roads by swamps. Historically, the community had lived off hunting, fishing and small-scale agriculture; what eventually became the Salonga National Park in 1970 was their ancestral home.

Dimaro recounts how a massive surge in military poaching between 1978 and 1985 left his community forests devoid of elephants, red river hogs and other game. Even though populations of forest antelopes slowly recovered over time, Tompoko was still in bad shape by the early 2000’s; with little game available, the villagers lived in poverty. Moreover, their ancient crop varieties were prone to diseases. Their former little thatch school building had fallen apart – classes had not been taught in years. Tompoko was not alone: in the country’s interior, there had been a general decline in government services resulting in a steady loss of education for at least a generation.

Mbuta remembers well when things started changing for the better: In 2001, he witnessed the creation of Etate, a patrol post in the Salonga National Park on the Salonga River, just across from Tompoko. The patrol post, manned year-around by up to 10 guards, was also a research station supported by the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM). Over the next three years, the villagers gradually started dealing with the patrol post, selling their produce.

Dimaro recalls how the village had taken the courage to re-invest in its future and the future of its children. Village notables approached ZSM, asking for assistance to re-build their school. By 2004, the Tompoko school was up and running again. For the next 15 years, ZSM would provide Tompoko with modest teacher salary support, blackboards, school books, chalk and notebooks. The villagers would maintain the school building and create a parent committee to oversee the teachers and materials. Moreover, in turn, they would continue to sell produce to Etate. Because Etate is located far away from commercial centers, the Etate guards needed a reliable, local source of food. This marked the beginning of a budding collaboration between Tompoko and the park. As of 2017, the Tompoko school had enrolled 118 children, and steady rations enabled Etate guards to thrive and mobilize anti-poaching patrols.

In order to increase local agricultural yield, ZSM set up an agricultural program between 2006 and 2010, supported by the US Ambassador Self-Help Fund and USAID (CARPE), for Tompoko and seven other neighboring villages. As a village notable, Dimaro was among the key persons that organized the distribution and multiplication of improved crop varieties for staples such as manioc, rice, beans and peanuts. Stimulated by the market to supply Etate guard rations, Tompoko increased its crop production while keeping the same overall field surface area -- thanks to the improved crop varieties and new farming techniques. The village could even sell surplus crops to nearby larger villages. When Lotulo, a second nearby patrol post, was created in 2012, the market demand for guard rations doubled. ZSM negotiated a guaranteed market with Tompoko that also including fixing fair prices for certain staples. The guaranteed market for patrol rations would become a yearly influx of $10,000 on average into Tompoko’s economy.

When asked to compare the living standards in Tompoko with other villages in the region, or with their own situation in 2002, Dimaro and Mbuta describe the increased number of adobe houses in Tompoko, the better clothes the villagers wear, their varied diet, the better school organization and equipment, and the higher number of lighted houses in the evening. Both village elders emphasize that it is the combination of their better income and the well-run school that makes Tompoko thrive. Dimaro also points out that the villagers now have the financial means to provide secondary education for the Tompoko children. For example, six of his own children have already completed secondary school, and one son recently obtained his university diploma and now works at the ‘Commisariat Fluvial’ in Kinshasa. Today, four of the six Tompoko school teachers are former students of that same little elementary school.

When asked whether it wouldn’t be better for Tompoko if the Salonga National Park would simply cease to exist so they could again have access to the park’s riches, Dimaro and Mbuta ponder the question. Both agree that they were indignant when their ancestral hunting and fishing grounds became off-limits because of the park’s creation. Over time, however, their views have become more pragmatic. Sitting in the Etate paillote, they construct a logical chain of thought:

“When there is no park, there are no guards, and ZSM is not here. We will have neither market nor school. Tompoko will be poor again, and our children will be illiterate. Everyone else from far away will enter our ancestral forest to hunt and fish, not just us. No, we cannot accept that the park will disappear! We would regret it if our children will never know elephants.”

Positive change is often not easy to measure at first. The symbiotic relationship that has developed between the Tompoko Village and the Etate Patrol Post is one example that can only be measured in small steps over years of sustained effort and support. Accepting that community benefits arise from the existence of a national park is the first step toward ensuring long-term survival of the park and becoming its advocate.

Over the past 15 years, USAID has funded the Zoological Society of Milwaukee’s community outreach programs through its CARPE and CAFEC programs. ZSM currently supports schools in five villages, reaching over 500 children, as well as two adult literacy classes. In addition to educational outreach, ZSM supports three local

April 2018 37 markets that provide rations to patrol posts in the northern periphery of the Salonga National Park.

Photo 1: Produce for sale at the Tompoko market.

Photo 2: Tompoko community leaders Mbuta Botuli (left) and Dimaro Ndombe (right), Etate.

b) Changing Perceptions of National Parks: Welcome to Etate Field Day! Conservation involves more than protecting animals. It involves teaching the next generation to value, understand, and protect wildlife. Take, for example, the children of Watsi and Tompoco and their annual field trip to the Etate Research Station and Patrol Post in the Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. The Salonga National Park is Africa’s largest lowland rain forested park and the premiere conservation site for the bonobo and forest elephant.

The day dawns beautifully bright as the sun illuminates the mist that clings to the Salonga River. Etate comes to life with an aura of anticipation. Even the phlegmatic ecoguard, Edmond, has an extra kick in his step as he helps prepare a makeshift classroom. The guards clean the camp, cut the grass, cook beans and rice, and chatter away like a family of finches. Twenty children, Etate guests, are due to arrive in two hours. The guards will be their host for the day and teach these kids about the park, its wildlife, and what it is to be a park guard. This will be an historic moment. Today the guards will take the first step to end a great paradox in the perception of their national park.

National parks in the United States are places revered for their beauty and celebrated as spectacular vacation spots. Not so in Congo. For local people, parks are paramount to an injustice because their ancestral lands, once converted to a national park, become off limits. Protected areas are mostly forbidden places for village people who survive by hunting and farming – activities banned in national parks. Park guards become enemies.

Yet, in the park, rare animals exist that local children and young adults have never seen. In the Salonga National Park, there are bonobos and forest elephants, for example, which no longer live in neighboring community forests because they have been hunted to extinction. Imagine, however, that just across the Salonga River and less than five miles from the village of Tompoko, bonobos and elephants roam - unseen for nearly a generation by the people to whose heritage these animals belong. No wonder locals believe that animals are considered to be more important to their government and to international conservation organizations than the people themselves. Today the Etate guards, hosting a field day for school kids, would take the first step to change this perception.

At 8:00 a.m. sharp, the children arrive. The 30-foot-long pirogue (dugout canoe) slowly comes to port. Children, aged 6 through 12, from the neighboring villages of Watsi and Tompoko had left their beds at 5 a.m. to walk two hours through a formidable swamp to catch the boat for Etate and go on a “field trip,” a concept entirely new to them. Accompanied by four school teachers, they sit on the pirogue floor, 20 small heads peeking curiously above the gunnel. “Welcome to Etate!” the guards call out while the children clamber into camp. The guards herd them into the paillotte (a circular covered veranda) where they all sit obediently around a large table, their eyes wide with expectation.

April 2018 39 A guard tells the children that it is a great honor to have them at Etate. He explains that Etate is a patrol post and a research station, and that the job of the guards is to protect the park’s wildlife and forest. He says that today, they would learn WHY the animals need to be protected, and that it was important for the students to pay close attention because THEIR job would be to teach others in their village about what they learned today. So, the day begins.

One by one, each guard takes a turn to describe the different animals in the park. They perform like seasoned teachers relating stories in animated tones and the rich detail of their culture. “What does the elephant do?” a guard asks. Amid bursts of eager hand- raising, a little girl jumps from her seat to answer proudly: “The elephant is the world’s largest agriculturist,” repeating what the guards had taught her moments earlier. “He plows the forest with his great tusks and prepares the earth to receive the seeds from trees and other plants!” The children learn about the wily bonobo with his human-like traits and intelligence. Leopards, monkeys, antelopes -- each get a turn. The chief guard speaks about his job to lead patrols to arrest dangerous poachers that kill the animals for bushmeat.

By 11 a.m. the sun burns through the morning mist. The children gulp down warm milk with sugar and eat a plate of rice and beans. After the break, the group visits the adjacent woods to search for bonobo nests nearby. Led by the guards, the children spot a nest high in the canopy! Then another, and, oh, yes, another. Louder and faster -- which team can find the most nests? After 30 minutes the guards round up everyone for a reassuring head count. Laughing and holding hands, the kids march back to camp. Strolling after them, the teachers talk with the park guards like old comrades.

The group ends their day back in the paillote, where each child receives a cap, T-shirt, box of crayons, and pages with animal drawings to color. Among fluttering papers and eager hands, the guards explain how to color the animals on the pages: black for the bonobo, blue for the parrot, and gray for the elephant. “Is this the elephant?” A small boy asks as he reorients the page. “Which way does it go?”

Photo 1: Etate guard pointing out bonobo nests to school children.

The irony is stunning: Not only have these children never seen an elephant before, but unlike every American school-age child, they have never even seen a picture of the world’s greatest land mammal, one that lives just five miles away from their village.

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Photo 2: Boy holding an elephant picture at Etate Field Day.

Since 1997, the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM) has conducted wildlife conservation programs in the Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. Based at Etate, ZSM supports anti-poaching patrols, monitors bonobos and elephant populations, and supports primary and adult education. The Etate Field Trip is in its sixth year.

c) Learning to Read, Learning to Lead: A Salonga National Park Guard’s Story It’s a rags-to-riches story, but it did not come easy for Bwase Isako. Born into a long line of fishermen and hunters, Bwase had no reason to pursue an advanced education; it was assumed that he would continue his family tradition, surviving by indigenous skills and his own strong back. Growing up near the world’s second largest tropical forest park in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), he had no idea that he would one day head a patrol post, use his innate knowledge of the forest to lead successful patrols against well- armed poachers, and help safeguard a haven for bonobos and forest elephants. The Salonga National Park, long known for rampant poaching, especially targeting forest elephants for ivory, has been at the center of USAID’s long-term efforts to preserve Central Africa’s forest ecosystems and mitigate global climate change (Central Africa Forest Ecosystem Conservation and Congo Basin Forest Partnership). Recognizing that park guards are the primary agents in biodiversity conservation, developing guard capacity is pivotal to protecting forest ecosystems. Toward that end, USAID support has changed the life of Bwase Isako, head of the Etate Patrol Post and Research Station.

Bwase arrived and worked in Etate as a young guard recruit. Over the next decade, he would gain the skills to become a full-fledged guard: he had to learn how to read and write; pass paramilitary training; show himself as a capable and reliable worker; and learn how to lead. For several years, he endured the rigors of regular patrols: walking long distances, crisscrossing dense forests and swamps, and pursuing poachers, some who were extremely dangerous, like ivory poachers. Once in 2011, Bwase and two other Etate guards were ambushed and taken prisoner by the infamous ivory hunter, Tofene. Tofene’s gang stripped the guards naked, beat them with thorned branches, and tortured them for a day, only to finally let them go (still naked) in order to send a warning to Etate guards. Although Bwase still carries the scars of that beating, he remains undaunted by the experience.

At the Etate Patrol Post, Bwase shadowed Bunda Bokitsi, a seasoned park guard and the chief guard of the patrol post, known for his exceptional leadership and anti-poaching abilities. He also attended literacy classes for guards, a USAID activity implemented by the Zoological Society of Milwaukee (ZSM). In time, Bwase obtained sufficient ability to collect patrol data and transcribe them into patrol reports in French (Fig. 1). Having seldom touched anything more technologically advanced than a machete, he ultimately mastered the use of maps, compass and GPS units -- skills necessary to navigate through a vast, uncharted forest (another USAID/ZSM training activity). Bwase received excellent scores in paramilitary training, in part because he possessed basic literacy and had already learned navigation at Etate. Then in 2015, under the auspices of the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN; DRC’s park authority), Bwase took over as the chief guard of Etate after the death of his valued mentor. The job requires regular accountability, organizing and leading patrols, following ICCN command directions, overseeing the guards that live at Etate year-around, supervising the use and care of materials, regularly obtaining rations, and providing reports. Using his forest expertise, Bwase also guides and guards researchers in their ecological studies.

April 2018 43 Today, the Etate surveillance area, approximately 1,000 km2 in size, maintains a near- zero poaching level as proven by repeated surveys of the area. Since 2016, the nine Etate guards have arrested 19 poachers and destroyed 60 poaching camps (primarily on the Yenge River – a thoroughfare into the rich interior of the park). Due to the effectiveness of Bwase’s guards, Etate protects nearly 1,000 resident bonobos (a rare great ape, endemic to DRC) and a remnant herd of forest elephants. Put into Salonga’s historical context, where basically no patrols operated in the park before 2000, Bwase’s rapid rise to park guard and chief guard of Etate is a testament to successful training programs and the long-term investment by USAID and partners that provide an effective program structure. In Bwase’s words:

“I am proud of my work – all the things I have learned so that I can lead patrols. I have the opportunity to work because I learned to read and write, and I know how to use the GPS. This big forest was left to us by our ancestors. It is my duty to protect it.”

Fig. 1: Bwase Isako’s patrol fiche.

Photo: Bwase Isako on patrol. d) Empowering women and girls in Monkoto In many instances women in the village are dependent on their husbands or fathers, and this is especially true for young mothers who are expected to raise their children and manage their household – often with minimal resources.

Photos: Women’s Literacy and Income Generating Activities in the Monkoto Corridor

Under the CAFEC program, WWF, in collaboration with a local NGO, has helped more than 525 women in 10 villages in the SNP corridor learn to read and write. This literacy program is part of the CAFEC’s efforts to empower women throughout the corridor. As part of this overall ‘empowerment’ process, these women have also been supported to start a number of income generating activities, including the development of home gardens and the manufacture of an improved local soap. This group of energetic women are now working together to produce this local soap and so far, have been earning on average of $160 per month. This revenue is being saved and will soon become working

April 2018 45 capital for this women’s group and used to invest in new IGAs and also establish a rotating loan program.

e) Malnutrition: “My child recovered from acute malnutrition!”

Since 2015, with the financial support from USAID, WCS has been helping communities in fighting against malnutrition and preventing malnutrition. 38 villages around the Salonga National Park have benefited from USAID funds and WCS support for improving their living conditions through the construction of latrines, the development of water sources and outreach meetings about hygiene and food practices against malnutrition. Over 2017, 231 children from Bianga sector, like Ezekiel Elombe (pictured beneath), were saved from malnutrition, thanks to USAID funds, WCS technical support and Graines expertise.

Unmoving in his mother’s arms, Ezekiel Elombe, four and a half years old in 2017, neither smiled nor cried (Left picture, beneath).

Photos: Child with malnutrition (left) and post-treatment (right) “My grandson got sick and his parents took him to a traditional practitioner in the surrounding villages. Informed of his health conditions, my husband and I went to find out about his state. When we arrived, I took the child in my arms, while his parents were explaining us the circumstances of his illness. I scrutinized him and I noticed the signs of malnutrition as we learned during the sensitization and trainings organized by WCS and local NGO Graines, with the USAID support.” said the grandmother of Ezekiel, in 2017.

Ezekiel's parents live in Bilangi village, located at 5 km from Wafanya in the Monkoto district, around the Salonga National Park. They had already lost other children, having the same malnutrition’s symptoms. But for them, it was witchcraft or a spell cast over their family. The traditional treatments and the incantations to chase the curse did not succeed to save the life of their children. Following the grandmother's advice, Ezekiel's parents took him to the nearest health center for treatment and after a month and a half of treatment, he recovered.

“I feared for the life of my son, I believed that he would die like his siblings before him, I was really desperate”, said the mother of Ezekiel. “But today, I am proud to present my boy to anyone who wants to see him and I strongly believe that a brilliant future is ahead of him. Thanks to USAID, my Son has survived.”

“Contrary to the popular belief, I understand that the malnutrition is linked to several elements like, water, hygiene and sanitation, healthy and diversified diet”, adds Mr. ILOTA LOKUNDA, indigenous people and community leader, from Sambwankoy village.

This action is part of the efforts that contribute to the protection of the Salonga National Park biodiversity while improving the well-being of the communities in the villages around the LOKOFA block, bordering the park.

The implementation of this project was possible with the support of USAID under the CAFEC program. WCS teams continue to sensitize neighboring communities for applying the recommended best nutritional and hygienic practices to save communities from malnutrition and built a sustainable future.

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