By http://www.virungaprograms.com
Kisimba-Ikobo Nature Reserve is 150 Kilometers from Goma Town, Eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). However, despite community wars happening there in this part of the world, it has continued to maintain relative peace, hosting nature at its pristine. It hosts lowland gorillas, chimpanzees, antelopes, okapis, elephants, buffaloes, and many species of monkeys, including the colobus monkey among others.
This is a nature paradise of earth worth visiting. According to Francis Ndagi, coordinator of Virunga Community Programs of Virunga massif, Kisimba-Ikobo hosts nature. “You are going to meet all these animals, happy in their natural habitat. This is where man falls in love with nature,” says Ndagi.
The surface is 1,298,488 square kilometers. It was legally recognized in 2002 by customary chiefs and local leaders as a national reserve, and officially recognized. In August 2008, it was recognized by the government DRC as a natural reserve.
When visitors come to any place, they want to see wild animals and plants in their natural habitats. Naturally, Kisimba-Ikobo Nature Reserve has all it offers to sustain different plant and animal species.
The nature reserve is located in the world’s most tropical forests, in an area rich in biodiversity that supports several endangered species including the gorillas.
In 2009, according to https://gorillafund.org/community-reserves-receive-grant/, the Walt Disney Company, in conjunction with Conservation International, granted $4 million to protect the Tayna Nature Reserve and the Kisimba-Ikobo Reserve in eastern DRC, which are home to endangered Grauer’s gorillas as well as many other important and unique species.
The publication reports that (the) have been granted legal status by the Congolese government equal to its national parks, with management carried out by local communities. They belong to a network of ten such reserves (in a consortium called UGADEC) created from lands donated by traditional leaders who have managed them for generations. The Fossey Fund is the primary partner with these communities, helping them to protect wildlife, support health, education and economic development, and carry out scientific research to direct their conservation efforts, with support from USAID.
According Ndagi, Tourism activities is quite low in the region because poaching is rampant, illegal mineral mining, deforestation; rangers are not being paid (in time) while the forest is so big to support local rangers efforts.
“They don’t have (enough) equipment to monitor the animals and capacity building there is almost zero. Even though it’s showing its face in the world, even simple things like infrastructure is a problem. However, what I have seen (from my foray there) there is women are actively involved in conservation, more than the men,” says Ndagi.
Last year between December 22 and 25 December 2017 poachers killed one lowland and five chimpanzees at station Kishonja in the national reserve.
Ndagi says private sectors like Virunga Community Programs are established to save Kisimba-Ikobo Nature Reserve. “When time comes, we are going to finance community development, community conservation, education, capacity building, management of forests and provide support and advocacy.”.
Kisimba-Ikobo Natural Reserve is a background reserve in DRC that is rich in nature. You can visit this paradise on earth day.
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