African Parks Takes On Co-management Of Kundelungu National Park In Drc: A New Era For Sustainable Tourism

Published on October 7, 2025

As recognized leaders successful nan section of conservation, African Parks has now entered into different semipermanent co-management deal, this clip pinch nan Congolese Institute for nan Conservation of Nature (ICCN), for nan guidance and recuperation of Kundelungu National Park. This 8,165 km² nationalist park, rich | successful biodiversity and astonishing sites specified arsenic nan Lofoi Falls, is located successful nan southeastern portion of nan DRC. Moreover, it besides has a captious ecological usability arsenic a protector of nan watershed of nan Lufira River basin. Without immoderate doubt, this woody represents different captious infinitesimal successful nan advancement of nan parkland by offering nan caller opportunities for sustainable tourism and organization improvement nan woody will create.

Focus connected Ecosystem Restoration and Community Development

The caller co-management statement betwixt African Parks and ICCN is aimed astatine reversing biology degradation and enhancing nan park’s domiciled arsenic a captious residence for galore species. Kundelungu National Park is location to divers wildlife, including respective endangered species, and its ecosystems are important for nan wellness of nan Lufira River basin, which provides h2o for thousands of group successful nan surrounding region.

The business will attraction connected restoring ecosystems that person been negatively impacted by quality activities, poaching, and residence loss. A cardinal facet of nan scheme is to instrumentality a community-driven attack that integrates section populations successful conservation efforts. This will not only thief sphere nan park’s earthy assets but besides foster semipermanent economical benefits done sustainable practices, including eco-tourism.

By collaborating pinch section communities, African Parks intends to supply replacement livelihoods that trim dependency connected unsustainable practices. This collaboration is expected to lend to some nan societal and biology cloth of nan region, pinch a attraction connected creating jobs and income-generating opportunities done tourism, conservation work, and supporting section infrastructure.

Strategic Positioning for Regional Ecological Connectivity

Kundelungu’s strategical location successful southeastern DRC, coupled pinch its accessibility from Lubumbashi, opens up beardown opportunities for location ecological connectivity and sustainable tourism. The parkland is surrounded by different protected areas, making it a important portion of nan broader ecological web successful confederate DRC and nan wider African Great Lakes region. This connectivity is captious for type migration, biodiversity conservation, and ecological health.

As portion of nan co-management plan, African Parks will beryllium moving to heighten tourism successful nan area. Kundelungu’s earthy beauty, including nan awe-inspiring Lofoi Falls, is an attraction successful itself, but nan summation of eco-friendly accommodations, amended infrastructure, and guided tours could make nan parkland an important destination for responsible tourism. By drafting successful travellers from astir nan world, nan parkland has nan imaginable to go a exemplary for conservation-led tourism successful Africa, benefitting some nan park’s ecosystems and nan surrounding communities.

Strengthening Conservation Efforts astatine Garamba National Park

In summation to nan activity astatine Kundelungu, African Parks has renewed its guidance instruction for Garamba National Park, continuing its longstanding business pinch ICCN. This renewal further demonstrates nan organisation’s committedness to conservation successful DRC, wherever it has been moving since 2005 to protect Garamba’s biodiversity, including nan critically endangered achromatic rhino. African Parks’ occurrence astatine Garamba, peculiarly successful anti-poaching efforts and restoring nan park’s ecosystems, sets a precedent for nan activity to beryllium done astatine Kundelungu, wherever akin strategies will beryllium employed.

Initial Phase: Building Foundations for Long-Term Success

The first shape of nan co-management task astatine Kundelungu includes important groundwork that will laic nan instauration for semipermanent success. This shape will impact recruitment and training of staff, biology assessments to show nan park’s existent condition, and nan improvement of a broad guidance scheme that is aligned pinch some conservation goals and organization needs.

This preparatory activity will guarantee that nan park’s guidance is some scientifically informed and culturally relevant, integrating nan knowledge and practices of section communities pinch modern conservation techniques. It is expected that nan successful implementation of this shape will pave nan measurement for further improvements successful biodiversity guidance and parkland accessibility for early visitors.

Promising Future for Tourism and Conservation

Kundelungu National Park’s imaginable for conservation-led tourism cannot beryllium overstated. The region has a wealthiness of untapped earthy resources, from its rich | wildlife and divers ecosystems to its unsocial taste heritage. The co-management business betwixt African Parks and ICCN offers a promising early for nan park, pinch sustainable tourism playing a important domiciled successful some backing conservation efforts and providing economical benefits to section communities.

Tourists visiting Kundelungu tin expect to acquisition a uncommon and unspoiled portion of Africa, pinch opportunities to spot unthinkable wildlife, research lush landscapes, and prosecute pinch section communities progressive successful nan conservation process. As tourism infrastructure improves, nan parkland could go a cardinal destination for quality lovers, wildlife enthusiasts, and eco-tourists alike, further driving economical maturation successful nan region while preserving its ecological integrity.

A Model for Conservation successful Africa

The co-management of this parkland symbolizes a caller section successful nan conservation of nan DRC’s earthy heritage. Thanks to nan expertise of African Parks, arsenic good arsenic nan information of ICCN and section communities, nan parkland will regain its ecological equilibrium and guidelines arsenic an epitome of affirmative conservation achievement.

Therefore, nan accent connected responsible tourism, ecosystem restoration, and organization upliftment makes nan business a beardown illustration to beryllium emulated successful different parts of Africa and nan world. For tourists, this consolidates nan ecological and taste worth of nan parkland arsenic a destination to acquisition Africa’s precocious wilderness and complement conservation activities.