African Wildlife Foundation barge confiscated

A barge that is an integral part of the African Wildlife Foundation's (AWF) wildlife conservation and development program in the Maringa Lopori Wamba Landscape was confiscated on November 12, by the Congolese military. The barge carrying agricultural products and humanitarian supplies to provide economic benefits for the people of the region, was confiscated for the purpose of transporting soldiers from Basankusu to Mbandaka.

This barge was one part of a cargo trip launched by AWF in mid September. The Ferbo I, a private boat, had been traveling up and down the Congo and Maringa Rivers to collect agricultural products from local farmers who had not seen a boat go up those rivers in over seven years.

The crew, including an AWF employee, was asked to vacate the barge. The agricultural products collected from people throughout the region were taken off the boat and put into storage in Basankusu.

AWF is operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo under formal agreement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in close collaboration with key Ministries including the Ministries of Rural Development, of Plan, and the Environment. This confiscation came as a total surprise to AWF staff and representatives on the ground and will have an impact on AWF’s development conservation objectives in the region.

AWF has petitioned the Ministry of Defense to return the boat as soon as possible and has asked them to refrain from future requisition of AWF property without prior discussion.

The cargo trip — the first in seven years — promised relief to local communities who have been unable to bring their corn, rice, peanuts, cassava and other crops to market due to the total collapse of any remaining regional infrastructure caused by the region’s civil war. Local communities were expected to benefit immediately from this transport, giving them access to much needed supplies. Over the longer-term, regular transport on the rivers would allow farmers re-establish their livelihoods, while reducing the destruction to local forests and wildlife.

“We understand and support the government’s efforts to maintain peace and security in the region.” says AWF’s Landscape Coordinator in the Congo, Jef Dupain. “But in light of the significant benefits the opening of the rivers will have on local populations, we have petitioned the Ministry of Defense to return the boat as soon as possible.”

“We are deeply concerned about the government’s disruption of the Ferbo I’s travel. We believe that regular transport along these rivers will enable farmers to re-establish their livelihoods by cultivating already-cleared land, while reducing the destruction to local forests and wildlife,” says Justin Belani, AWF’s Agro-Economist Specialist. Belani was among the crew who were asked to vacate the barge.

During the area’s civil war, an estimated three million people died. Desperate residents who once sustained healthy crops of coffee, cocoa, rubber and palm oil were forced to flee deeper into the forests in search of food, causing great destruction to the forests. In addition, locals began illegally hunting bonobos in search of meet, taking a huge toll on the population of these threatened species. One of the most threatened primate species in Africa, the bonobo — or pygmy chimpanzee — is genetically humans’ closest relative. The bonobos are currently being hunted and slaughtered for food in post-war Congo.