Gabon: in Pongara, animals are making a comeback
Audio 02:17
A herd of buffaloes move through the Pongara reserve in Gabon.
© RFI / Yves-Laurent Goma
By: Yves-Laurent Goma Follow
6 mins
Established as a national park 19 years ago, access to the Pongara reserve has been closed to poachers and conservation efforts are bearing fruit.
Elephants, buffaloes even hippos are back.
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From our special correspondent in Pongara,
Before setting out to meet the wild animals of Pongara, tourists must follow the mandatory safety instructions.
The first encounter is with a group of monkeys.
Ingrid Bignoumb Bi Moussavou, eco-guide in the park, knows them well.
“
It's a very good little colony.
We will be able to continue the hike, it bodes well for a very good day,
”she presumes.
The hikers move away.
Among them, Florence, a young geologist who works in oil in Port-Gentil.
She took this trip to see wild animals in the wild and not locked up in zoos.
Buffalos and elephants
With her binoculars, she sees a group of buffaloes on a meadow.
But she is not very satisfied.
“
It was a very beautiful buffalo.
It is true that it was very far, it would have been magnificent to be able to see it more closely, face to face.
She nevertheless hopes to see him more clearly "
soon, in the next few hours!"
"
20 minutes later, Florence can admire an elephant having its meal in a bush.
"
They are really very specific little elephants from Gabon, magnificent to see with their large tusks,
" she said.
Illuminated by a red light, a Pongara elephant moves at night in the forest.
© AP / Jerome Delay
A little further on, a chimpanzee is perched on a tree.
His cry echoed in the forest.
Conservation efforts that pay off
“
More and more, we are making observations of animals in general,
” says François Boussamba, a fine connoisseur of Pongara. He is convinced the animals are back thanks to conservation efforts. “
The animals are back. They can be easily observed. Before 2002, you had to go very far to see them. But since 2005, with conservation efforts, we have had animals up to a few meters, and even in villages,
”he explains.
The return of the animals is great news, but a real headache for the local populations.
Kevin was born and raised in Pointe-Denis, one of Pongara's most popular tourist spots.
“
In general, it is the elephants and buffaloes, at night, behind the houses, which come to feed in the garbage cans.
They also break down houses.
We have no assistance ...
”he laments.
Agriculture is now almost impossible, the populations are demanding to be involved in the tourism development of the park.
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Gabon
Wildlife