The Virunga National Park stretches from the Virunga to the Rwenzori Mountains in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, bordering the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and the Rwenzori Mountains National Park in Uganda. Covering 7,800 sq km, it was established in 1925 as Africa's first national park. The Virunga National Park (formerly Albert National Park) lies from the Virunga Mountains, to the Rwenzori Mountains, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, bordering Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Rwenzori Mountains National Park in Uganda. Covering 7,800 square kilometres (3,000 sq mi) it was established in 1925 as Africa's first national park. It was classified as a World Heritage Site in 1979. In later years it has become known for its mountain gorillas, although poaching and the Congo Civil War have seriously damaged its wildlife population. The park is managed by the Congolese National Park Authorities, the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature or ICCN (ICCN). The national park covers the western shores of Lake Edward, known for its hippopotami (depleted by more than 95 percent in 2006[1]) while elsewhere, marshland, grassland plateau and plains dominate the park. The Ruwenzori Mountains lie on the Ugandan border and rise to alpine meadows and a glacier, while Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira are both active volcanoes with substantial associated lava plains. Virunga NP is located in an area of high human population density in D.R. Congo. Lake Edward (within the Park) has one of the most productive fisheries in Africa and many people rely on the protein coming from its tilapia fish. Poverty is very high in the region and use of natural resources from the Park (fuel wood, charcoal, grass thatch, etc) is common. Balancing the needs of the local population and the needs for conservation is tricky as at present many resources have been over-harvested because controls couldn’t be enforced during DRC’s civil wars.
Although mountain gorillas are now extremely rare and listed as one of the most critically-endangered species, successful conservation work has helped to secure the remaining populations. Their populations actually increased during the years of political upheaval in the region (1994-2004), but renewed military conflict in the park (October 2008) including the seizing of the park headquarters and expelling of park rangers, poaching, and rampant deforestation for illegal charcoal production once again cast doubt on their future [2]. It is believed that both savanna and forest elephants and chimpanzees can still be found in Virunga, along with Okapi, giraffes, buffaloes and many endemic birds. The neighbouring Mount Hoyo area was managed with the park and is home to a population of Bambuti Pygmy people, caves and waterfalls, but since the civil wars, the park has suffered somewhat. Land invasions and intense poaching have challenged the park authorities to the limit, but most rangers have remained active. Since 1994, about 120 rangers have been killed in the line of duty protecting the park from illegal poaching and land acquisition.[3] Amongst other military activity, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda or FDLR has been using the park as a safe location when they have come under sustained attack, such as Laurent Nkunda's offensives against them in April-May 2007. The park was occupied by Nkunda's forces on 26 October 2008, during the Battle of Goma. VNP has been affected by civil war and its consequences since the early 1990s. The main threats include: traditional and commercial poaching by local people; rebel groups and the military inside of the Park; illegal fishing, settlement, and encroachment; grazing; uncontrolled bushfires; and recently, targeting of rangers by various armed groups because they have been trying to stop these illegal activities.
Virunga National Park (VNP), Africa’s oldest, was created in 1925. Located in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and bordered by Uganda and Rwanda, this Park encompasses 8,000 km2 of a variety of natural habitats that range from glaciers at 16,000 ft to lowland forest at 1,800 ft, and include savannas, wetlands, bamboo, montane forest, and active volcanoes. It harbors more bird (706) and mammal (196) species than any other Park in Africa, and contains 109 reptiles, 78 amphibians, at least 2,077 plant species, as well as various threatened and endemic species found in the Albertine Rift region. The Park is managed by the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN) with several international and national NGO partners. WCS first worked in VNP in 1959 when George Schaller started his pioneering study of the mountain gorilla. There has been intermittent support since then, but in 2001 WCS launched a long-term program, as part of the larger Greater Virunga Landscape, and is providing equipment and technical support to the ICCN. Virunga Park is part of a larger landscape of contiguous protected areas: the Greater Virunga Landscape. It plays a key role in this landscape by linking the other sites in Uganda and Rwanda. Because of the transboundary nature of the Park, WCS objectives are focused on transboundary collaboration between DRC and Uganda and strengthening its support to ICCN. The following activities are currently being implemented in the Park: • Transboundary management between the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) and the ICCN to support field activities to tackle regional and transboundary threats: coordinated patrols by the two institutions; regional warden’s and technical meetings; intelligence information gathering; and public awareness. • Developing a ranger-based monitoring system for the Park by providing training, equipment, and basic supplies to ensure data collection and analysis by ICCN staff. • Support to ICCN: rehabilitation of patrol posts destroyed by the war; field rations for patrol teams; and basic equipment such as uniforms for all the Park staff, GPS units, radios, and outboard engines for patrols on the lake. • Surveys and research: We have completed biodiversity surveys of the Virunga Volcanoes (where the mountain gorilla is found) and plan to undertake more surveys when security improves elsewhere in the Park.
