Celebrating 25 Years of Action for Biodiversity

In the Fazao- Malfakassa national park, the number of elephants increased by 57 per cent in 10 years [ ] 220 Participatory management of protected areas To support the collaborative man- agement of protected areas, Village Associations of Participatory Pro- tected Area Management (AVGAP) have been established, particularly at the level of the protected areas of Oti-Kéran-Mandouri, Togodo, Abdoulaye and Bayémé. The AVGAPs are grouped into a larger union of village associations for the participa- tory management of protected areas (UAVGAP). As such, 48 AVGAPs were placed around the Oti-Kéran- Mandouri national park and 50 were established at the Fazao-Malfakassa. In addition to the three AVGAP set up in 2011 around the Abdoulaye Fauna reserve, three new ones were put in place, bringing to 104 the total number of AVGAP by 2013. Mechanisms have been devel- oped to mobilize resources for the AVGAP and UAVGAPs. For example, residents of the Oti-Kéran-Mandouri enjoyed dividends of 30 per cent of revenue from the park’s crossing rights between 2006 and 2008, ena- bling school building. A ministerial order granted a 15 per cent rebate to the riparian population as a result of the exploitation of forest plantations. Between 2006 and 2009, the Office for Forest Development and Exploitation (ODEF) paid about US$ 265,000 per year to the popula- tions bordering the state plantations. NGOs actively support people in sustainable natural resource man- agement projects. For example, the NGO, Rafia, has accompanied the populations of four villages in the savannah region in the management of community forests with the im- plementation of income-generating activities. The project to strength- en the conservation role of Togo’s National Protected Areas System (PRAPT) has initiated the enhance- ment of non-timber forest products in the savannah region with women’s communities through beekeeping and the manufacture of shea butter around Oti-Kéran-Mandouri. The Environmental Action Associ- ation for Sustainable Development is also working with Alibi populations in Tan Prefecture to develop a plan for the development and manage- ment of a 4,000 ha community forest with the support of IUCN France and the GEF The ITTO project “support for the mobilization of community initiatives for the promotion of forestry in Yoto” has contributed to the socio-econom- ic development of basic communities through the protection of flora and the development of reforestation activities. This was achieved through a self-promotion pilot in the form of action research for integrated sustain- able development. Target populations were encour- aged to develop private reforestation activities in order to create community forests whose future exploitation could significantly improve their incomes. L ocated on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa, Togo is one of the smallest countries in Africa, 56,600 km 2 , and has a great diversity of natural landscapes. To the south, the country faces the Atlantic Ocean with a coastal plain of lagoons, mangroves, marshes and small sacred forests. The centre of the country is characterized by hills and mountains ranging from south-west to north-east, as well as savannas and wooded plains. The northern part of the country also includes vast savanna plains as well as agroforestry parks and dense dry forest plots housing the main protected areas including the Oti-Kéran-Mandouri and Fazao-Malfakassa national parks, and the Galangachi and Doungh wildlife reserves. Ogou, Plateaux Region, Togo JB Dodane on flickr Togo