Empowering CSOs and Local Communities to Sustainably Manage the Cape Three Point Forest Reserve
The Guinean Forests of West Africa Biodiversity Hotspot extends across the southern part of West Africa and into Central Africa north of the Congo Wilderness Area. The hotspot covers 621,705 km² and is divided into two subregions the ‘Upper Guinean Forests, which stretches from Guinea in the west, through Sierra Leone, Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo and, marginally, into Benin and the ‘Lower Guinean Forests’, covers much of southern Nigeria, extends into southwestern Cameroon, and also includes São Tomé and Príncipe and the offshore islands of Equatorial Guinea.
The forests support impressive levels of biodiversity, with high levels of species richness and endemism. Major threats such as agricultural expansion, unsustainable logging and fishing, hunting, and trade of bushmeat, industrial and artisanal mining, and pollution, among others have resulted in the loss of the native vegetation cover and qualify the region as a hotspot.
This project aligns with the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF)’s Strategic Direction 4 and investment priorities 4.1 and 4.2 for the Guinean Forest Hotspot. Contributes to Strategic Direction 4 by enhancing the capacity of local CSOs and community groups through network building and mentorship to support conservation efforts in the Cape Three Point Landscape.
The focus will be on building skills in fundraising, project management, financial management, and governance. By providing targeted training in these areas, the project ensures effective fund utilization and successful implementation of conservation initiatives, maximizing the sustainability and impact of the efforts.
The project is to improve the capacity of CSOs/CBOs and local communities to enhance and sustain their effort towards conserving species and habitats as well as improving local livelihoods
- Organize capacity-training workshop for local conservation CSOs on fundraising, branding, and corporate engagement skills.
- Organize capacity-training workshop for National conservation CSOs on strategic planning, marketing, financial management, and project management.
- Facilitate peer-to-peer learning sessions and exchange visits among smaller emerging CSOs and national CSOs to learn and exchange ideas on institutional governance and team building.
- Mentor smaller emerging CSOs to improve their capacity in institutional governance, financial management, and project management through site visits.
- Train Women-led organizations/associations on leadership skills to promote gender equality and address institutional issues that do not favor women’s participation in biodiversity conservation.
- Train Women-led organizations/associations on alternative livelihood skills in tour guiding, bee harvesters, value addition, and marketing to create employment and generate income.
- Facilitate the creation of a network among women-led organizations/associations to enable them to share resources, knowledge, and best practices and form partnerships.
Donor
Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF)
Other Collaborating Partners
Project Publications and Other Resources
CEPF Project Brief
English | PDF | 10 MB
