Supporting an elephant sanctuary

The Omo-Shasha-Oluwa Forest Reserves contain some of the last remaining forest in South-Western Nigeria and a population of 30 elephants but it is threatened by logging, over-hunting and clearance for farmland.  This Foundation project aims to carry out activities that will lead to the establishment of a new protected area called the Omo-Shasha-Oluwa Elephant Sanctuary. Activities will include:

• Exact mapping of feasible forest boundaries, and an assessment of the elephant and chimpanzee populations.
• Extensive engagement with communities and the state government authorities to officially gazette the protected area and obtain their support for a management plan.
• Develop a Project Idea Note (PIN) as a first stage in the process of obtaining carbon credits for the protection of the forest and its elephants.

A management plan will be developed for the forest that will be used as a fund-raising tool for the final phase which is the actual establishment of a full blown protected area management program. This will help the protection the unique biodiversity of western Nigeria’s lowland rainforest and the livelihoods of several thousand people who depend upon the products they harvest from these forests.