Gabon opens a reflection on the conflict between man and elephant

Gabonese Prime Minister Daniel Ona Ondo opened Monday in Libreville, the works of a national forum on “Human-wildlife”conflict, characterized in recent years by the devastation of the plantations by elephants, coming closer to villages following the strict implementation of international conventions on the full protection of those very greedy pachyderms.

The two day Forum is organized in partnership notably with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the Network of Protected Area of Central Africa (RAPAC ).

It aims to put in place mechanisms to enable mitigate the consequences caused by the elephants and even leopards that attack the peasants for a peaceful coexistence between man and animals.

The head of the Gabonese government advocated the establishment of a fund to compensate victims of human-wildlife conflict.

In 2010, the Gabonese government had already developed a national strategy and in 2012 an action plan and management of human-wildlife conflict.

The implementation of the measures advocated by battery these provisions requires an investment of 10 billion CFA francs (over 16 million USD).

According to a study on conflicts between humans and animals in Gabon, the provinces most affected by this phenomenon are the Ogooué-Ivindo (northeast), Ogooué-Lolo (south-east) and the Haut – Ogooué (southeast).

According to WWF, Gabon is the last refuge of forest elephants, compterant about 48,000 heads.