OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 2016 ANNUAL REPORT MISSION TO CONSERVE THE OKAPI IN THE WILD, WHILE PRESERVING THE BIOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY OF THE ITURI FOREST OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT PROJECT STAFF Founder & President - John Lukas On-site Director - Rosmarie Ruf Asst. Director - Enckoto Napameyi Marcel DISPENSARY NURSES Asst. Director of Education - M’monga Kiete Anzatebedanga Accountant - Mutahinga Mumbere Eleme Mbambu Mituho Asst. Accountant - Kambale Katsuva Julien Mulowayi Katalayi Program Officer - Lucas Meers Seburo Bwichubungize

AGROFORESTRY INFRASTRUCTURE/MAINTENANCE Department Head - Muvi Yalala Mbete Nguma Vusike Kiruzi Program Asst. - Mpinda Tchinkunku Kababo Mutubule Abdoul Kimakima Technician - Enckoto Bameseto Panga Madro Kasereka Katsuva Technician - Makubili Mwanika Sagbolo Yuma Katsuva Kaposo Technician - Masiyiri Mulawa Paluku Kakule Yangunapayi Makasi Mbusa Mughanda Abdala Moricho Muhindo Maliro Alezo EDUCATORS Gomo Akya Kakule Kavunga BOARD OF DIRECTORS Kalinda Mubengwa Scott Citino Kasereka Kyove Linda Fairstein Mumbere Kayenga John Heminway Nelson Murongo Charles Knowles Toliba Maseko Pat Manocchia John Lukas

FRONT COVER: Male okapi recorded We'd like to thank WCN for providing by an OCP camera trap near the top of longstanding support, guidance and Mount Mbia, just 1 km from the Okapi fundraising opportunities. Wildlife Reserve Headquarters in Epulu. 2016 ANNUAL REPORT A LETTER FROM JOHN

During 2016, the security situation in to carry out OCP’s far-reaching education the Okapi Wildlife Reserve gradually and community assistance programs. improved with no insurgent attacks During 2016, OCP educators produced occuring since January 2015. This was 2,000 calendars and 1,000 copies made possible by the support we provided of the first Okapi Wildlife Reserve to our partner, the Institute in Congo Newsletter which were shared with many for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN), communities living inside and along the to conduct more targeted anti-poaching Reserve boundaries. operations in conjunction with the Congolese army gradually shifting its Our educators installed large signs at the focus to keeping gold mines closed by two entrances to the Reserve that show securing access roads and trails to the the protected endangered animals living mines and following up on information on in the Reserve to remind all travelers that Maimai movements. they are protected by law and you cannot hunt them. ICCN patrols were dispatched to areas previously too dangerous to transverse We added a new Women’s Group in because of the presence of armed Mungbere, where OCP provided resources insurgents. In 2016, the ICCN rangers in line with what all the women's groups carried out 498 patrols which covered receive such as administrative support, 14,190 km on foot and resulted in 2,156 sewing machines and materials, beans snares dismantled, 70 poaching camps and vegetable seeds for community destroyed, 113 poachers arrested and gardens to each group in an effort to 1200 miners evacuated from the Reserve. support small business enterprises that As a direct result of improved security empower women. in the region, ICCN patrols were able to monitor 55.5% of the Reserve – an M’Monga Kiete, OCP Assistant Director increase of 15% over 2015. of Education, was the point person for the UN funded STAREC peace and After the attack on the Zunguluka guard reconciliation program that reached over post by Maimai militia in January 2015, 30,000 people living in and around the which heavily damaged the newly built Reserve through meetings and workshops guard housing blocks, the Guard post was to address current issues in the Reserve completely rebuilt using funds through a and solidify each communities and grant from the USFWS African Elephant government agencies commitment to Fund. In an effort to provide and promote Reserve security. sustainability, solar power and rainwater cisterns were installed in each of the We have had many ups and downs guard houses. over the last 29 years, but we remain steadfastly committed to our mission to As the security situation inside the Okapi protect and conserve okapi in the Wildlife Reserve gradually improved, we wild. All of what we do would not be were able to install camera traps to better possible without the generous support monitor the okapi populations’ response we receive from WCN, zoos of the world, to the reduction of the number of foundations, government institutions insurgents, miners and poachers traveling and individual donors. A special thank through and living in the Reserve. The you to all our friends and donors from images of wild okapi, as best as we can the OCP staff and ICCN rangers in DRC, determine, are the first recorded for the your support provides life-enhancing Okapi Wildlife Reserve. opportunities for them and their families.

Progress made by the ICCN and the Congolese army to clear out poachers and miners has made it possible for OCP staff to travel freely around the Reserve

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 1 CONSERVATION BUILT ON TRUST FOILS AMBUSH, SAVES LIVES

Community Conservation is a necessary the sustainability of their food sources, component of effective conservation improve the delivery of health care and projects across Africa. Although we often education, while reducing impact on forest hear that ‘too many people are the problem’ resources that okapi need to survive. causing the devastating impacts their activities have on wildlife and natural We have anecdotal evidence that the habitats, what we also know is that a real communities in which we invest are more solution involves working with people to cooperative, are better stewards of their address threats to wildlife. Measuring the land and more respectful of Reserve effectiveness of supporting communities regulations. Although this impact is hard to and addressing quality of life needs, relative measure, as many variables are involved, to the ultimate goal of habitat protection it is easy to imagine what would happen to for wildlife, is very difficult to quantify and the forest if we were not working with the subject to much debate. communities; we just need to look east to North Kivu province where large areas have OCP has wide-reaching community been deforested and converted to large assistance programs that include support scale agriculture. of schools, health clinics, women’s groups, farmers, soccer teams and local In July of 2016, there was an incident development projects such as building at Nzaro on the eastern border of the clean water sources. We do this to create Reserve that showed why it is important dialogue with community members about to support communities and keep how they can cooperate with Reserve lines of communication open between regulations and at the same time, improve community leaders, conservation project

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staff and ICCN rangers. An ICCN- valued the people in the delegation and UNESCO delegation of OCP Staff, WCS appreciated what they had done to make Staff, ICCN rangers led by the Mambasa life better for his community members. District Administrator, was meeting with community leaders in Nduye to enhance Once informed about the ambush, ICCN collaboration between all parties in rangers hiked through the forest and implementing peace and security initiatives came up behind where the poachers had funded by the UN. positioned themselves, surprising them. Not unforeseen, a shoot-out ensued, and OCP has been working directly with one poacher was killed and the rest fled the Walese Karo community since 1994 into the forest. No rangers were injured. through the establishment of the Bukulani The delegation then passed, picked up the and Nduye ICCN patrol posts, initiating rangers and made it safely to Mambasa. soya-bean cultivation to help children in dispensaries, improving 4 water sources, Lives were saved because the community assisting the women’s group in Nduye with valued its conservation partners. These gardening and tailoring and providing were not ordinary lives. They were school supplies to primary and secondary dynamic people working diligently to schools. conserve okapi – all are highly skilled and competent advocates for conservation While the delegation was preparing to and communities that are critical to the travel back to Mambasa on the lone dirt functioning of the Okapi Wildlife Reserve. track through the forest, farther down They would be hard to replace in present the road, a band of eight poachers armed day DRC. These dedicated conservationists with AK-47s set up an ambush. They had are alive today because we invested in the positioned themselves on both sides of the communities and that investment really road along the forest edge ready to open fire paid off by protecting the human assets that on the partner delegation as they passed drive our programs to conserve okapi and on their motorcycles at a very low rate of the bountiful diversity of the Ituri Forest speed due to the poor road conditions. for all human kind. As the poachers were waiting in ambush, local people on foot and motorbikes were Community assistance is often shown allowed to pass by without harm. Several as a dotted line supporting conservation passersby notified their chief about what objectives, but in this case, it was a they had seen, and he sent word to the solid line from community members to delegation, who were ready to depart, about conservation agents that saved the lives of the location of a possible ambush. The chief dedicated Congolese conservationists along risked serious reprisals from the poachers a lonely forest trail in the middle of the and put his village in danger because he Congo.

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 3 CENTRAL CORE ZONE CONSERVATION AREA

When the Okapi Wildlife Reserve (OWR) Area within the OWR. This agreement was created almost 25 years ago, it was will prioritize the preservation of the envisioned that someday a portion of the biodiversity in this protected area by Reserve would receive protected status making the conservation of wildlife the similar to that of a National Park. As a primary objective within the core area of Wildlife Reserve, certain human activities the Reserve. are allowed – limited agriculture, collecting firewood, collecting medicinal Since the OWR has been inhabited by plants, developing sources for drinking people since its inception (no people water and sustainable hunting by the were moved out to create the Reserve), a indigenous Mbuti and Efe pygmies. zoning process was undertaken over the last 16 years which has resulted in the The various civic and cultural demarcation of 32 agricultural areas and stakeholders involved in the conservation the recognition of 31 hunting areas (which of nature in Ituri Province, DR Congo represent more than half of the 13,700 met on July 21, 2016 in Mambasa to sq. km. of the Reserve) for indigenous sign the Protocol Agreement dedicating hunter-gatherer pygmy tribes living inside the Central Core Zone Conservation the Reserve.

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With an area of 3,296 square kilometers, UNESCO, and implemented by Wildlife the Central Core Zone is now a totally Conservation Society and OCP as protected area comprising 25% of the partners of ICCN working in the Reserve. land area of the Reserve. Only ICCN resource protection activities, biological The signing of this document is an research and authorized passages such opportunity to reiterate the importance as travel to agricultural zones and of this protected area set aside to hunting zones in the surrounding areas conserve okapi, the national animal of are permitted. DR Congo and for the conservation of natural resources that benefit both local The formal recognition of the Central communities and many other species of Core Zone was the result of long, wildlife. As a global hotspot for wildlife, fruitful and constructive negotiations formalizing the protection of the Central between the surrounding communities Core Zone will enable the preservation and the Institute in the Congo for the of biodiversity and ecological services Conservation of Nature (ICCN), and is in this protected area for the benefit of the final product of the zoning process surrounding communities and for the for the Reserve and was financially world at large. supported by USAID-Carpe and

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 5 REHABILITATED AFRICAN GREY PARROTS FLY FREE

In 2015, 100 grey parrots were confiscated by and began flying around their enclosure. A ICCN at the vehicle check point in Epulu. The door near the top of the enclosure door was person transporting the parrots had a legal left open for a few hours each day, and the permit for 50 birds, so 50 birds were returned birds that were strong enough to fly eventually to him by ICCN. OCP staff maintained the departed on their own. They stayed around 50 remaining parrots in a large aviary at the the area for a few days but the lure of the station for rehabilitation before they were able wild parrots flying overhead eventually drew to be released, as their feathers were damaged them away. Gradually, over several months, when they were caught using glue traps on the most of the birds left on their own to join the ground around clay licks. The OCP holding wild flocks, with only a few parrots needing facility was enlarged to provide food stations additional time to heal remaining in the in many locations so all the birds could get enclosure. enough to eat. It is very satisfying to now see this group of It was encouraging to see wild parrots confiscated birds living in the forest canopy roosting in trees high above the enclosure above, and flying about in the company of every day calling to the recuperating birds as other wild parrots. Occasionally they roost if giving them encouragement. During the above their temporary home giving comfort non-nesting season, African Grey Parrots are to the birds remaining in treatment as only very social and travel in large flocks. As the parrots can do –loudly! birds’ feathers grew out, they gained strength

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REBUILDING THE ZUNGULUKA GUARD POST In January 2015, the Zunguluka guard post unit. The guards have already begun moving was attacked and burned by Maimai militia. in with their families and the complex was In a show of solidarity following the attack, fully occupied by the end of 2016. and after security had been reestablished in the area, OCP workers and carpenters Providing comfortable living conditions rebuilt the 6 guard housing blocks that were respects the efforts the rangers and their damaged. After removing large, cumbersome families’ make to protect the animals and sections of burned roofs, damaged doors and people living within the Okapi Wildlife shattered windows, the workers installed Reserve. All renovations were made new roofs and replaced everything that was possible through a grant provided by the damaged. United States Fish and Wildlife Service African Elephant Fund which has been very With all new facades the housing complex supportive of our efforts to improve the offered a glimpse of renewal after a living conditions for the rangers and their devastating attack on the community. To families that dedicate their lives to protecting demonstrate and promote sustainability and the largest populations of forest elephants clean energy inside the Reserve, solar power and okapi in DR Congo. and water cisterns were installed in each

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 7 CAMERA TRAP STUDY PROVES SUCCESSFUL

During early 2016 as the security and is made up of Jean Paul M’monga situation inside the Okapi Wildlife (OCP/ICCN), Berce Nsafuansa (WCS), Reserve gradually improved, we put ICCN rangers Marceline Kpetule, Alain in motion a plan to better monitor the Masumbuko, Muyisa Muzaliwa and okapi populations’ response to the Talaguma Ilebe, Zaituni Lubenga (OCP) reduction in the number of miners and Mbuti guides Mustafa Tapi and traveling through and living in the Michael Jackson. Reserve. Through a grant from WCN’s Cross Partner Exchange Program, All members of the team participated in Jim Sanderson of the Small Cat a training class on putting together and Conservation Alliance advised OCP on dismantling the camera traps, changing which camera traps to purchase, how the batteries, making adjustments to to set and place them, and provided the camera settings and installing a feedback on image quality and camera camera trap securely to a tree. Everyone settings to the staff in the field. had a fun time acting like unsuspecting okapi setting off the camera so we could In July, we brought in five camera traps, review the images to better understand metal ‘bear proof’ housings (to keep the complexities of the location of the poachers at bay), spare batteries, cables, sun, density of the background, height locks and memory cards. The array off the ground, camera settings and of equipment raised eyebrows while the distance from a clearing needed to passing through Congolese customs and capture good images of okapi. posed some difficulties, but nonetheless, after agents were given copies of our We were unsure of how people would annual report, all five cameras made it respond to seeing the cameras deep in to our research station. the forest, so we chose our first location in an area people usually avoid because The objective of this first phase of the of the difficult terrain. Led by our two project was to train a team of OCP staff, Mbuti guides, we hiked up Mt. Mbia WCS staff and ICCN rangers to set up, (one km from Epulu), started to work monitor, collect and sort images and be our way down the back side of the able to move the camera traps around mountain and immediately came across the forest. “TEAM OKAPI” was formed a small circular opening trampled down

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to form a soft substrate – an okapi bed – camera trapping animals in rainforests a perfect place for our first camera trap around the world who are available to to be deployed. ICCN ranger Marceline, respond via Skype to any questions they one of the four female rangers trained may have. last year, was in charge of taking GPS coordinates of camera trap sites so we As we move the cameras around and could collect data on the number of collect good images from the camera okapi living in the area. traps, they are shared with local people to show them all the wildlife that live Results have been impressive so in the nearby forests. We describe what far with several images of different we are doing and enlist their help in okapi, and various species including monitoring the security of the area duikers, chimpanzees and monkeys around the camera traps so we can recorded. We continue to adjust our safely access the cameras to collect the approach, and TEAM OKAPI has several images. experienced biologists working on

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 9 World Day

Tuesday, October 18, 2016, marked the and encouraging them to host their own inaugural World Okapi Day to bring ‘mini’ events. We wanted to tap into the many awareness to one of the most elusive large millions of guests that visit zoos throughout mammals found anywhere in the world. the world and especially the people that take Initially confusing scientists with the stripes care of okapi. These are the people that are of a zebra, the body of a horse, and a head of a invested in saving animals, and whose support giraffe, the okapi was the last major mammal we needed to protect okapi in the wild. discovered in Africa by scientists in 1901. Even over 100 years later, many people are The campaign went viral. Hundreds of still unaware that this unique but endangered people and organizations gathered together forest giraffe even exists. to teach their friends and families about the enigmatic okapi with their impact reaching To protect this unfamiliar animal, we hundreds of thousands of people. Zoos, needed to make people aware of the schools, and conservation organizations okapi’s role in saving large tracts of forest. across the globe – U.S., U.K., Japan, Belgium, With encouragement from okapi keepers Germany, France, Czech Republic, United and enthusiasts worldwide, the Okapi Arab Emirates, and even at home in the Conservation Project (OCP) worked with zoos Democratic Republic of Congo – joined in to and other conservation partners to create a celebrate the day. Zookeepers participated day that focused on teaching everyone about by making educational scavenger hunts, the okapi, through a social media campaign providing photo booths, and opportunities to

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encounter the okapi in person. Though the event and reach a wider audience year after impact is difficult to measure, the awareness year to teach more and more people about of the plight of the okapi is the first phase of the plight of the okapi and what they can do protecting this gentle creature. to help protect this very special creature and its habitat in DR Congo. World Okapi Day will be celebrated each year on October 18, and we hope to grow the

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 11 AGROFORESTRY GAINS POPULARITY The continued success of the agroforestry and no longer need our assistance. OCP is program has contributed to a greater awareness looking into expanding into the towns of of the damaging effects of slash-and-burn Mungbere and Wamba in the North, giving the agriculture within the Reserve and an interest agroforestry program more evenly distributed among farmers in improving food production. coverage throughout the Reserve. Thirty-two agricultural zones were created with involvement of community leaders OCP plant nurseries located around the to allow local farmers to grow and harvest Reserve jump start tree seedlings under shade crops within a designated area and limit their structures until they are mature enough to impact on the surrounding rainforest and be planted in reforestation sites. In 2016, okapi habitat. According to OCP educators, nearly 40,000 tree seedlings were distributed in 2016, no evidence has been observed of around the Reserve for reforestation projects. farmers expanding beyond the boundaries of One site was located near the Binase Primary the agriculture zones and encroaching into the School compound in Mambasa which provided forest. opportunities to involve the students and educate them on the importance of trees in OCP agronomes teach farmers sustainable the landscape and their role in providing practices to increase crop yields while food and shelter for their many unique extending the life of the soil through crop and endemic animals. The involvement of rotation and incorporating nitrogen-fixing students in sustainable activities helps instill a plants into their plots of land. Because of the conservation ethic in the future inhabitants of success of these practices, over 100 additional the towns and villages that will require more farmers join the program each year as slots food to be produced to feed the expanding open up when farmers become self-sufficient human population for years to come.

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OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 13 14 OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 2016 ANNUAL REPORT

EMPOWERING WOMEN THROUGH ENTERPRISE

Continued investment in and empowerment not properly maintained. OCP committed to of women’s groups within the Reserve leads to rebuilding twelve water sources and another women having more influence on community NGO is planning to build seven new water decisions on how resources are used. This sources in 2017 in villages inside the Reserve. creates a more receptive audience for our Helping communities find solutions to their educators in reaching out with messages problems helps build trust that leads to about conservation that can lead to actions improved relations with OCP educators and by community members that will help protect ICCN rangers that can facilitate protection of okapi and other animals living within the Ituri forests surrounding villages where we invest Forest. in improving their quality of life. In the summer of 2016, OCP led focus Due to the lack of economic opportunity in the groups that were held in six villages with area, OCP developed a women’s association 155 women participating which examined in Mungbere in the northern sector of the Reserve regulations, and the sustainable use Reserve. Ten women were identified to start of drinking water and firewood. Additionally, the program with a target of 30 women all were given the opportunity to bring eventually joining as funds become available. forward pressing needs for their families. These women are eager to improve their skills Their number one concern was access to and earn income to support their families by clean, safe drinking water sources because learning how to develop their own enterprises of a marked increase in diseases where involving tailoring, sewing and gardening. water sources had been contaminated and

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 15 THANK YOU DONORS & PARTNERS

FOUNDATIONS, CORPORATIONS & RELATED INSTITUTIONS Amazon Smile KfW - German USAID – CARPE Benevity Forest Biodiversity UNESCO Briar Patch Fund Conservation Project US Fish and Wildlife Columbus Zoo Mohammed bin Zayed Walt Disney Company Conservation Fund Species Conservation Wildlife Conservation Creations 4 Wildlife Fund Global Endangered Species Prince Bernhard Wildlife Conservation Chocolate Conservation Fund Network George and Mary Rabb Teelen Wildlife Conservation Fund for Conservation Kennismanagement Society Global Giving Overbrook Foundation International Animal SeaWorld and Busch Exchange Gardens Conservation International Fund for Fund Animal Welfare Tusk Trust UK/USA

ZOO PARTNERS AND RELATED ORGANIZATIONS Antwerp Zoo Disney's Animal Saint Louis Zoo BioParc de Doue la Kingdom San Diego Zoo/WAP Fontaine Dublin Zoo Sedgwick County Zoo Bronx Zoo Dvůr Králové Zoo Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo Brookfield Zoo AAZK Fort Worth Zoo Tanganyika Wildlife Park Chapter Fossil Rim Wildlife The Maryland Zoo at Chester Zoo Center Baltimore Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Houston Zoo Ueno Zoo Chicago Zoological Jacksonville Zoo and White Oak Conservation Society Gardens Wilhelma Zoo Cincinnati Zoo & Memphis Zoo Wroclaw Zoo Botanical Garden Nashville Zoo Yokohama Zoological Cologne Zoo Oklahoma Zoo Gardens Copenhagen Zoo Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo Basel Columbus Zoo and Zoo & Aquarium Zoo Berlin Aquarium Parco Zoo Falconara Zoo Leipzig Dallas Zoo Rotterdam Zoo Zoo Wuppertal Denver Zoo Safaripark Beekse ZooParc de Beauval Detroit Zoo Bergen

INDIVIDUAL DONORS Abaja, Merle Trish Enders, Maurice ADELMAN, Kenneth Cavell, Emma Face, Valerie and Gabrielle CHAN, Beverly Farkas, Sandra Agarwal, Robin Church, Katrina Friedel, Sarah Anonymous CITINO, Derek Fuquay, Dylan Baglin, Raymond & CITINO, Scott Gee, Pamela Carol Coleman, Dennis Gelvin, Bruce Barongi, Rodrick COMBS, Susan & Gerlach, Caroline BERG, Judith Curtis GESKE, Matthew Beswick, Pamela & Kevin Comiskey, Frank Godar, Amanda Black, Amelia Cortright, Dave GONZALES, JR., Art Boyd, Don & Susan DAR, Arianne Grenier, Jill Bugman, Nancy Gee DE MARTINI, Grimm, Rebecca Burgin, Mike Joseph Gross, Adam BYRNE, Bridget DORION, Dottie & Head, Brenton Calabrese, Francesco George HEMINWAY, Campbell, Bruce & DuPuis, Nicole John H.

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Hendren, Vanessa Martinez, Eduardo Sadoulet, Valerie Hendrix, Brittany Masselink, Joel Salas, Corrina HOLT, James MATSUMARA, Sams, Kim HUGGINS, Patrick Sharon Sander, Janina Ishiwada, Kenji McCarthy, Margaret Searight, Jane JOHNSON, Daniel MCCONNELL, Susan Shambaugh, Steven and Kim and Richard Sheppard, Rebekah Jump, William Scheller Simon, Linda KARNOS, K. McDonough, Erin Spear, Chaim Keller, Robert McGilvray, Julie STAUFFER, Alice and Key, Jay Meaney, David Thomas Hagler and Kirchoff, Bruce Mears, Derek B.Thomas Reams Kirkendall, Caroline Meehan, Christine Stewart, Sarah Khepri, Brian Meyer-Ewald, Stokes, Ross Kross, Michael Stephan and Andrea TABOR-BECK, Linda Kurunthottical Family Ewald TALL, Susan Living Trust Monsky, John & Joan Tanquary, Julia Latorre, Kendra MUJSCE, Carol TERK, Mitchell & Lavigne, Francis Mweetwa, Thandiwe Nadine Lay-Dorsey, Patricia Myers, Susan Thompson, Lawrence Lee, Eva NORVIG, Kristan and Tjugito, Rani LEIDEN, Thomas & Peter TUCKER, Lisa and Kathleen Nyhan, Alice Douglas Lesowitz, Nina Orban, David Ulander, Mia Leus, Kristin Owyang, Sheryl VERGARA, Hugh & Lidell, Michael PARKER, Marjorie Barbara Lloyd, Rosemary Petric, Ann Viator, Felicia Logan, Penny Pharoah, Nathanael Wantuck, Danielle Lomas, Frank PORZIG, Klause & Ward, Avery LUKAS, John and Ellen Ward, James Vanessa Posner, David Warren, Catherine LUNDBERG, Shane Pressman, Jan WHEATLEY, Charles Mabbett, Trent Pritchard, Shaun Wilcox, Clinton Major, Andrew & Gemma RABB, George Wilson, Kelly MARANO, Lizbeth Reid, Bonnie WOODS, Gerald and Mel Bochner REARDON, Maureen Yordanov, Krasimir Margulis, Cindy Lukas Zuckerman, Andrea Marion Central School Robinson, Philip District Roth, Ashley Marshall, Cathy Russell, Paul Bold = $250 and up Martin, Fran Rustad, Nicole BOLD CAPITAL = $500 and up

SPECIAL THANKS AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Houston Zoo for Dallas Zoo for their Jacksonville Zoo and their commitment to 3-year commitment Gardens for their staff providing support to to support OCP. commitment and our education team. office space. Thank you to our dedicated volunteers! Brandy Carvalho Derek Citino Vanessa Lukas Judy Clark Scott Citino WCN Staff

OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT 17 2016 FINANCIAL SUMMARY

KfW - 3%

UNESCO - 9% Zoo Support - 26%

WCS (USAID) - 11%

REVENUE Individual Support $240,607 Zoo Support $233,530 Grants $217,454 WCS (USAID) $96,000 UNESCO $85,174 KfW $25,928

TOTAL REVENUE $898,693

Individual Support - 27% Grants - 24%

OCP Epulu Operations - 25%

ICCN Support - Conservation 29% Education - 10%

EXPENSES ICCN Support $257,152 OCP Epulu Operations $224,601 Conservation Education $139,893 Community Assistance $36,945 UNESCO $85,174 Healthcare $77,326 US/Nairobi Office $70,602

TOTAL EXPENSES $891,693 Community Assistance - 4%

US/Nairobi Healthcare - 9% Office - 8% UNESCO - 10%

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2016 ANNUAL REPORT

WHERE ARE WE LOCATED? THE LUSH RAINFORESTS IN THE HEART OF AFRICA

The Okapi Conservation Project works 1996 and supports the largest populations of in the Okapi Wildlife Reserve (OWR) in okapi, chimpanzees and forest elephants in the northeastern sector of the Democratic DRC. In addition to the many species of plants Republic of Congo. Covering nearly 14,000 and animals, the OWR is also home to the square kilometers and encompassing one fifth indigenous Mbuti Pygmies, a population of of the Ituri Forest, the OWR was established hunter-gatherers that share the forest with the in 1992, declared a World Heritage Site in endangered okapi.

OKAPI WILDLIFE RESERVE

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO OKAPI CONSERVATION PROJECT Protecting the endangered okapi, and its habitat, in the Democratic Republic of Congo

As an endemic species of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the okapi is the national conservation symbol of the country. A flagship species, it serves as an ambassador representing the incredible diversity of life found in the region.

• The okapi has only been • Approximately 3,000 okapi known to the Western world live in the Reserve. since 1901. • The stripe pattern is unique to • Classified as ‘endangered’ each individual. by the IUCN Red List. • They communicate via sound waves below human hearing.

Okapi Conservation Project is represented by Wildlife Conservation Global, Inc. (WCG), a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization. One hundred percent of gifts made to the Okapi Conservation Project directly support the management of the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, help local communities find sustainable ways of living and provide an extensive refuge for the region’s endangered creatures.