In Niger’s Sahelian zone, agro-sylvo-pastoral farming systems are driving worrying biodiversity erosion. This is particularly the case for large mammals such as the hippopotamus (classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, listed under CITES Appendix II). The project operates in the Ayorou region (around 200 km north-east of Niamey). Around 100 hippopotamuses are distributed along 50 km of river there. With no protected area whatsoever in place, coexistence between agropastoral communities and hippopotamuses is becoming increasingly difficult.
The project aims to help address this biodiversity erosion by focusing specifically on the conservation of the remaining hippopotamus population along the Niger River, with the objective of combating the disappearance of the hippopotamus by facilitating its coexistence with humans.