Virunga Alliance

The Park is located in a region best described as a low intensity conflict zone. Rangers are deployed throughout its territory, with the exception of its northern extremities, currently in the hands of the ADF-NALU militias, and the region of Masisi in the extreme South – a territory with a lower ecological value. The number of armed groups’ members is estimated at 1,500 and 3,000 individuals in and around the Park. These groups engage in criminal activities including trafficking of charcoal, illegal fishing, illegal agriculture, poaching for ivory and bush meat, kidnapping, and extortion (barriers and taxes).

The region has one of the highest population densities in Africa with around 300 inhabitants/km2. Five million people live within a day’s walk of the Park boundaries, one of the highest rural population densities in Africa.

The socio-economic conditions for the Park’s adjacent populations are extremely precarious. Outside the cities, residents live mainly off subsistence agriculture, livestock and fishing. Land in the region is fertile but yields remain low because of land tenure problems, lack of access to credit, insecurity and poor agricultural practices. The transformation industry for agricultural produce is largely absent, and there are few jobs outside smallholder farming. The poor state of the roads further adds to the challenges.

The income generated from natural resource trafficking from the Park is estimated at 175 million USD per year. Over 100,000 people derive their direct livelihood from these illegal activities. About 50 million USD of this figure contributes to the wealth of irregular militia groups. The money they obtain from kidnappings, robberies and murders adds to their power. Tolls collected at informal road barriers also represent indirect revenues from the Park’s products.

International trafficking involves the removal of ivory and hardwoods. This international trafficking poses a serious risk, especially for elephants, but its impact remains low compared to local trafficking.

The clearance of forest to produce charcoal is a major threat. Charcoal, known locally as “makala” is massively consumed by the inhabitants of the cities of Goma, Beni and Butembo. To a lesser extent, wood is also used for carpentry and construction.

In 2013, the Park launched the Virunga Alliance which brings together North Kivu’s public authorities, civil society and the private sector around a shared vision of sustainable development. Together, they pursue three objectives: the conservation of the Park’s natural resources, the reduction of poverty and the promotion of peace. They are interdependent and of equal importance because the success of one ultimately determines the success of the others.

Virunga National Park is part of the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN) which is an institution of the Democratic Republic of Congo, (DRC), responsible for the protection of nature. The Virunga Foundation (VF) is a charitable organization under British law, whose mission is to contribute to the protection and development of the park.

In 2015, the ICCN and the Virunga Foundation entered into a cooperation agreement – a public-private partnership – running until 2040. While the organisations are separate, in the field, ICCN staff and Virunga Foundation employees work under the authority of a single management.

Eastern Congo suffers from two key structural problems that hamper its economic development: inadequate roads and a very adverse business climate. As part of the three pillars of the Virunga Alliance, there is a commitment to improving local infrastructure and governance.

Transport is key to sustainable development and a thriving agricultural business. In the absence of quality feeder roads, small farmers cannot reach urban markets and sell their produce, or can only reach markets after excessive delay and difficulty with produce whose quality has deteriorated. Instead, intermediaries buy the harvest at a very low price and keep the profit margins. Many products that could be produced within the DRC are imported and sold at much higher prices.

The Virunga Alliance is the result of the collaboration of the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN), the Virunga Foundation, and 127 local institutions from the private sector, civil society and government agencies.

The program is being implemented by an experienced team of Congolese and international experts, with a long track record of delivering effective results in the region. The team operates through Virunga Energies, a DRC subsidiary of the Virunga Foundation, structured to ensure good corporate governance and to promote institutional sustainability.