Garamba National Park

• Armed conflict and political instability
• Poaching by nationals and trans-border armed groups
• Inappropriate management capabilities to address the poaching crisis (resolved)
• Lack of management plan

• Increased poaching
• Pressure linked to the civil war, thereby threatening the flagship species of the property

In progress

Adopted in 2010, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/4082 
Revised in 2016, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/6652 

In progress

Total amount granted: USD 937,000 from the United Nations Foundation, the Governments of Italy, Belgium and Spain and the Rapid Response Facility; USD 200,000 from the Government of Norway in 2020-2021.

On 8 April 2022, the State Party submitted a report on the state of conservation of the property, available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/136/documents, which provides the following information:

• The numbers of certain species characteristic of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property have stabilized, in particular the elephant, thanks to the professionalization of the fight against poaching, the operationalization of the ecological monitoring system and a strengthening of the collaboration between the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN), the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), African Parks (AP), the local communities and the provincial authorities. The inventories carried out in 2021 reveal in particular the presence of 65 individuals of Kordofan Giraffe and approximately 902 elephants in the property;
• The subspecies of the northern white rhinoceros has not been observed in the property since 2008 and assessments were carried out by AP in 2018 and 2021 on the suitability of an introduction of the subspecies of the southern white rhinoceros. A consultation framework is proposed with UNESCO and IUCN to analyze the feasibility of this introduction;
• Poaching for bushmeat, illegal fishing, bushfires, the arrival of transhumant herders and artisanal mining remain the main management challenges. They mainly affect the hunting grounds adjacent to the property;
• A business plan for the property, financed mainly by the European Union and USAID, sets the management guidelines for the period 2022-2026. The creation of a 2 km buffer zone around the property is envisaged in the definition of the Land Use Plan (LUP) but the process is slowed down by negotiations on the relocation of artisanal mining sites existing in the hunting domains that surround the property;
• Sustainable socio-economic activities are implemented for the benefit of local communities with particular emphasis on sustainable agriculture, access to basic social services, increased availability and access to renewable energy;
• Transborder cooperation continued with South Sudan for concerted and efficient management of the Garamba-Lantoto landscape and the forthcoming signature of a protocol agreement between the two States Parties will formalise this cooperation;
• Progress is noted in the achievement of the indicators of the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) as well as in the implementation of the corrective measures, and a joint reactive monitoring mission is requested to assess the conservation efforts of the State Party and its partners.

On 17 February 2023, ICCN informed UNESCO of the introduction process of 76 individuals of southern white rhinoceros to the property from South Africa. On 21 February 2023, the World Heritage Centre invited the State Party, through ICCN, to submit the comprehensive study mentioned in its correspondence for examination by IUCN as soon as possible. At the time of writing the present report, no response has been received from the State Party. During a visit to the World Heritage Centre on 12 June 2023, the Director-General of ICCN confirmed that a first group of 16 rhinoceros had just been translocated to the property on 10 June 2023.

The State Party is also considering submitting a new nomination for the property to better reflect its Outstanding Universal Value.

The information provided in response to Decision 44 COM 7A.41 and on the implementation of the corrective measures, notably the strengthening of management and monitoring capacities, strengthened multi-stakeholder collaboration and the development of income-generating activities for the benefit of local communities are welcomed, and the State Party is encouraged to continue its actions for the effective protection and management of the property.

The results of the ecological monitoring confirm a temporary stabilization in the numbers of Kordofan giraffes (65) and elephants (902), and an increase in hippos (2655) and buffaloes (8446). However, these populations remain extremely limited compared to the situation at the time of inscription of the property. The elephant population in the property was estimated at more than 11,000 individuals before the start of the conflict in 1996 and at 1,191 individuals during the last census in 2017. The high level of poaching for commercial and subsistence purposes in the hunting grounds adjacent to the property remains of concern. It is recommended that the Committee reiterate its request to the State Party to continue efforts to control poaching in order to promote optimal conditions for wildlife restoration. Recalling that the northern white rhinoceros subspecies is most likely extinct within the property, the consideration of introducing 76 individuals of the southern white rhinoceros to replace the northern white rhinoceros based on the findings of the risk assessment conducted by AP in 2021 is noted. However, considering the ongoing efforts to study the feasibility of in vitro reproduction of the northern subspecies on the basis of genetic material preserved on the last surviving individuals in captivity, such an introduction must be subject to consensus within the scientific and conservation community. It is noted that the State Party and its partners have begun implementation of a white rhinoceros introduction programme in the property with the translocation of a first group of 16 individuals of the southern white rhinoceros subspecies in June 2023, and that a second risk-benefit analysis was carried out in 2021 following that of 2018, which concluded that the benefits of white rhinoceros introduction outweighed the risks. While noting that the southern white rhinoceros could potentially fulfill the ecological functions of the northern white rhinoceros in the Garamba ecosystem, it is unclear to what extent the long-term management of the subspecies in the property as well as the risks that may be associated with such an introduction have been taken into account, notably the security situation in the property area and the persistence of poaching, disease, competition with other herbivorous species and veterinary considerations. It is recommended that the State Party submit the 2018 and 2021 risk-benefit assessment reports to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN, and consult with the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) African Rhino Specialist Group prior to any rhinoceros translocation operations, in line with IUCN SSC best practice principles.

The report on progress towards achieving the Desired state of conservation indicators for removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) as proposed by the 2016 mission is noted. However, the State Party has not yet submitted the final version of the DSOCR, with clear indicators for the recovery of the key wildlife populations based on recent inventory data available from aerial surveys and the monitoring system, as well as the recommendations of the June 2022 regional workshop held in Kinshasa on support for the process of removing natural properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in the French-speaking countries of Africa, in order to identify a feasible timetable for the eventual removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger. It is therefore recommended that the State Party submit this document as soon as possible.

The existence of a business plan guiding management actions for the period 2022-2026 and the financing of its implementation thanks to support of the European Union and USAID are positive. However, the constraints linked to the relocation of the existing artisanal mining sites in the hunting grounds are noted, and the limited progress for the definition of a LUP and the creation of a functional buffer zone of 2km around the property are of great concern. It is recommended that the Committee reiterate its request to the State Party to expedite the finalization of the LUP and the creation of the buffer zone in line with the sustainable development strategy of the Park, the ministerial decree of 2019 prohibiting artisanal mining in the hunting grounds, the strategy for the relocation of refugee camps outside the Park, and any other strategic document.

The continued cooperation with South Sudan, through the conduct of a technical assessment mission for the establishment of a bilateral cooperation framework for the enhanced management of the Garamba-Lantoto landscape is welcomed. It is imperative that the Memorandum of Understanding between the two States Parties be formalized and implemented as soon as possible in order to effectively control illegal transborder activities such as poaching and trade in wildlife products.

Furthermore, the willingness of the State Party to receive a joint UNESCO/IUCN Reactive Monitoring mission to analyze the progress made with a view to possible removal from the Danger List is noted.

The proposal to re-nominate the property is noted. Indeed, the Statement of Outstanding Universal Value for the property inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1980 places considerable emphasis on the presence of the last population of the northern white rhinoceros, now considered probably extinct in the wild. A new nomination would examine the justification for the original inscription under criterion (x), taking into account both the likely extinction of a key species, but also the wider range of species of high conservation value that were not recognized at the time of listing. This could potentially enable the definition of an updated DSOCR for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger.

Finally, it is recommended that the Committee retain the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger.