Celebrating 25 Years of Action for Biodiversity

The freshwaters of the Chad Basin are among the most productive in Africa, currently supplying 120,000 tons of fish per annum [ ] 77 Considering the potential for biodiversity resources and reintroducing the oryx The country’s climate is of a dry tropical type, characterized by the alternation of two seasons: the rainy and the dry. Droughts have been re- curring since 1970. The hydrographic network has consequently suffered a significant decrease in volume. The most significant case is Lake Chad, which has lost more than 90 per cent of its water volume from 25,000 km 2 to less than 2,500 km 2 in the space of 25 years. Despite the disturbing deteriora- tion of its natural resources in gener- al, and water resources in particular, Chad has still considerable potential for biodiversity resources. Its net- work of protected areas consists of three national parks, seven wildlife reserves, a biosphere reserve and a community pilot area — a total of over 10 per cent of the country’s territorial area. The main pressures exerted on these protected areas are: pastoral pressure, with poaching concentrated on the most emblematic species such as elephant, giraffe, and manatees; desertification; repetitive droughts; national and sectoral policies of the primary sector, playing a role in reducing conservation areas; demo- graphic pressure; wild bush fires; ignorance and non-observance of laws; and poverty. The reintroduction of the oryx Faced with the extinction of the algazelle oryx in the wild in the Sahelo-saharan band, this innovative project led by the Sahara Conserva- tion Fund (CWS) aimed to identify a place and create the prerequisites for the successful reintroduction of the oryx algazelle in Chad. The animals were brought in from the United Arab Emirates. After conducting extensive studies on the best methods to use and the best location in which to reintro- duce the oryx, the final choice was the 80,000 km 2 Wadi Rhymed-wa- di Achim reserve in central Chad, which offers the most favourable conditions for the relocation of the large-scale antelope. Aware- ness-raising of government officials and rehabilitation of the reserve was undertaken through the recruitment of new guards and detailed studies of living conditions on the reserve. The conditions have been met to ensure a win-win balance between local communities, the algazelle oryx, and the flora and fauna of the desert. The first wild reintroductions were made in 2015. Chad Chad L ocated in the heart of Africa, between the 8th and 24th degrees north latitude and the 13th and 24th degrees East longitude, the country is vast. Its surface area is 1,284,000 km 2 , stretching 1,700 km north to south and 1,200 km east to west. It is the twentieth largest country in the world, the fifth in Africa after Sudan, Algeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Libya, and is the third largest country in sub-Saharan Africa. The population is estimated at over 11 million inhabitants with a high annual rate of non-refugee growth of the order of 3.5 per cent David Stanley on flickr