A new five-year project seeks to help 547 households affected by the planned expansion of Volcanoes National Park establish businesses and access markets, as part of efforts to secure livelihoods for those due to be resettled in the planned Smart Green Village in Musanze District.

The initiative is being implemented through a partnership between the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) and Entrepreneurial Solutions Partners (ESP), a pan-African consulting and investment firm.

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The organisations said they wanted to expand economic opportunities for communities living around protected areas by connecting them to business development support, markets and financing.

The partnership was signed in Kigali on Monday, November 2. The two organisations aim to extend the programme to more than 3,500 households over time.

The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) plans to expand the park by about 3,740 hectares to provide more habitat for mountain gorillas and other wildlife. AWF has been working alongside the government of Rwanda on the broader conservation programme.

Kaddu Sebunya, AWF’s chief executive officer, said conservation efforts must go hand in hand with economic opportunities for communities living alongside wildlife.

"By partnering with ESP, we are bringing enterprise, markets and finance into African-led, people-centred conservation, so that thriving wildlife and thriving communities become one and the same goal,” Sebunya was quoted as saying in a statement.

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The new partnership will add an enterprise development component to these efforts, with AWF drawing on ESP’s experience in helping businesses grow, access markets and secure financing.

While the Smart Green Village focuses on housing, infrastructure and livelihood opportunities for affected families, the new partnership is specifically intended to strengthen community enterprises and connect them to markets and finance.

Under the agreement, the organisations said they would work in four areas: developing entrepreneurial opportunities for households, building enterprises and value chains, restoring and sustainably managing natural resources, and improving access to markets, finance and infrastructure.

The value chains identified include high-value horticulture, cotton and shea production.

Eric Kacou, ESP’s co-founder and managing partner, said communities living alongside wildlife should benefit from the economic value of natural resources.

"By bringing skills, markets and Intelligent Capital to AWF’s six decades of conservation leadership, we can build ventures that create lasting prosperity and give communities every reason to protect nature for generations,” he said.

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Beyond Rwanda

The partnership will also cover Uganda’s Kidepo Valley Conservation Landscape, where ESP will build on AWF’s existing work with 2,280 cotton farmers adopting regenerative agricultural practices.

The practices are intended to improve agricultural yields while safeguarding wildlife corridors. The initiative also plans to support shea production, reaching a further 4,320 people, complementing programmes established by AWF and the Uganda Wildlife Authority.