Poaching and illegal logging have drastically reduced by 85 percent in the Volcanoes National Park.
Prosper Uwingeli, the Chief Warden of Volcanoes National Park revealed this while showcasing Rwanda’s achievements in protected areas.
He was speaking during a high-level dialogue dubbed "Opportunities for One Health Approach for people and biodiversity” at the ongoing IUCN Africa Protected Areas Congress (APAC) that has gathered over 2,000 delegates.
Volcanoes National Park-habitat of popular gorillas, with an area of 160 km² in north-west Rwanda, is one of Africa's protected areas.
The dialogue featuring Dr. Daniel Ngamije, Rwanda’s Minister of Health, Steffi Lemke, German Minister of Environment and Stewart Maginnis, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Deputy Director General, focused on discussing and making suggestions as to how cooperation on One Health can be improved and better achieved.
The panel discussions also focused on mobilising global, regional and local cooperation and action for one health and biodiversity as well as the role of research (academia), financing, mobilising partnership and financial resources in conservation in Africa.
Uwingeli spoke about One Health initiatives around Volcanoes National Park integrating community, ranger and animal health (gorillas), and ecotourism.
"In 2005, we introduced revenue sharing scheme which has helped to bring on board communities in conservation because they benefit from 10 percent of tourism revenues,” he said.
In 2019, Volcanoes National Park accounted for 91.7 per cent or $26 million of the $28.5 million generated revenues from three parks with the great contribution of gorilla trekking.
Despite the effects of Covid-19 pandemic on the revenues, he said, the park is recovering.
By 2020, over Rwf5.2 billion had been distributed by Rwanda Development Board to 647 community-based projects since 2005.
In 2019 alone, $2.85 million was shared with the community.
"Over the past 15 or 20 years, poaching has reduced by 85 percent. While we used to face thousands of poaching and illegal logging cases per year, we are only recording less than 500 cases per year. This is because communities were involved in conservation as they get alternative income instead of poaching and logging,” he said.
Under the revenue sharing scheme, communities also benefitted from infrastructure such as water supply, electricity, schools, health centre, income generating projects and others while others were employed in fighting poaching, he said.
Among 12 sectors along the park, there are over 40 cooperatives with over 5,000 members that play a role in conserving the park and benefit from the revenue sharing scheme.
Park expansion
Uwingeli said that, 60 years ago, Volcanoes National Park was encroached and deforested by agricultural activities which reduced its size.
"Today there is no buffer zone which causes conflicts between gorillas and other wildlife with the surrounding population,” he said.
There is a planned outlay of $255 million, to expand the park by approximately 23 per cent, increasing its size by 37.4 square kilometres or 3,740 hectares.
This is based on the fact that the mountain gorilla population in the Virunga Massif has increased from 480 in 2010 to 604 as of June 2016.
"The conservation of the park will ensure sustainable development,” he said.
He said that to ensure one health with biodiversity, the Ministry of Environment, Agriculture, the Ministry of Health among others are working together to ensure the park’s conservation.
Link between health and nature
Biodiversity supports human health in many ways, including through the delivery of basic goods and services, sustained by well-functioning ecosystems.
Experts say in addition to its direct effects on health, biodiversity is integral to key development sectors that modulate health outcomes directly or indirectly, such as forestry, fisheries, agriculture, and tourism, on which an estimated 1.5 billion people depend for their livelihoods.
Minister Ngamije said that pandemics like Covid-19 among others have links with the way nature is conserved.
"Rwanda has prioritised healthy people in a healthy environment. Efforts to conserve, protect and restore the environment is not only done to cope with climate change, but also to ensure human health, livestock, agriculture and biodiversity. Health and environment are two sides of the coin that are interlinked and interdependent,” he said.
He said Rwanda has developed a One Health Policy, One Health Strategic Plan and currently a group of experts from various sectors is developing One Health Operational Plan.
"This gathering provides us with an opportunity to reflect on and appreciate the linkages between human health, biodiversity, and environment as well as the need for shared responsibility towards integrated and holistic planning, policies and investments,” he said.