Tchimpounga Sanctuary Facts
Download printable fact sheet. - Located 30 miles north of Pointe Noire in the Republic of Congo
- Is the largest chimpanzee sanctuary on the African continent
- Houses over 120 orphaned chimps - a number that continues to grow
- Built for JGI in 1992 by Continental Oil Company
- Neighbors the Tchimpounga Reserve which spans over 18,000 acres of land (a recent census found that 50-60 wild chimpanzees live within the reserve)
- Employs 75% of the sanctuary staff from neighboring villages as eco-guards and chimp caregivers
- Purchases all fruits and vegetables from village markets surrounding the reserve
- Strives towards the following four holistic community centered conservation objectives:
- To provide a safe refuge for orphaned chimpanzees
- To preserve the unique savannah and mosaic forest along the coastal plain, therefore protecting the wild chimpanzees who inhabit the surrounding area
- To improve the lives of the local community
- To promote conservation education and an understanding of the need to preserve the biodiversity of the area for the benefit of all who live there - Hosts a large number of visitors – approximately 50 per month – creating exposure for the sanctuary and its efforts to protect chimpanzees from extinction
- For more information, please visit our Africa Programs website.
Bushmeat Facts
Download printable fact sheet. In Africa, the forest is often referred to as ‘the bush’, and meat from wild animals hunted in the forest is referred to as ‘bushmeat’. - Bushmeat includes elephant, gorilla, chimpanzee and other primates, forest antelope (duikers), crocodile, porcupine, bush pig, cane rat, pangolin, monitor lizard, guinea fowl, etc.
- The commercial bushmeat trade has surpassed habitat destruction to become the most immediate threat to the future of wildlife in Africa.
- The commercial bushmeat trade has already resulted in widespread local extinctions in Asia and West Africa.
- The loss of wildlife threatens the livelihoods and food security of indigenous and rural populations.
- Bushmeat consumption is increasingly linked to deadly diseases like HIV/AIDS, Ebola, and Foot and Mouth disease.
- Bushmeat constitutes approximately 80% of all animal-based protein consumed in Central Africa.
- One million metric tons of wildlife is killed for food in Central Africa each year.
- In Brazzaville (Congo), approximately 15,000 carcasses pass through the markets per year and approximately 290 are chimpanzees.
- Given current population growth rates, it is likely that the demand for bushmeat will increase by 2-4% per year- a rate that exceeds the replacement potential of already over-hunted wildlife populations.
- Bushmeat orphans- usually primates whose parents were killed for meat- are often traded into the pet or entertainment industries and kept in horrifying conditions or left to die in the forest or the market.
- For more information, please visit our Africa Programs website.
Sources: Bushmeat Crisis Task Force and the Jane Goodall Institute |
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