Minkébé National Park (8,000 km²), located in north-eastern Gabon, is home to a population of 30,000 elephants and is also the customary territory of the Baka people. It was in this forest that they lived before settling, and they know every corner of it. Unfortunately, Minkébé’s rich elephant population, together with the presence of the Baka, attracts the attention of poachers. As a result, the illegal ivory trade is highly developed in the area, organised into a genuine network in which the Baka are involved at the grassroots level. The Baka hunt elephants for traditional reasons, but also, and above all, for the money this activity can bring them. The project is led by an association made up of the Baka of Minvoul, representing a community of 400 individuals, who have been working with WWF Gabon, co-funder of the project, since 1998. The association will receive technical assistance from WWF.
Even modest, the income generated by tourism activity will help lift this Baka community out of its highly precarious and dependent situation.
The project’s objective is the development of an ecotourism activity by the Baka pygmies in Minkébé National Park, located in northern Gabon, 600 km from Libreville, as an economic alternative to traditional elephant hunting.