Title: "Comparative Study of Protected Areas Management in African tropical Forests"

Project number: B7- 5041/93.25/VIII/FOR

Amount: 214.060 ECU

Contractor: ARCA CONSULTING SRL (Italy)

Field: Protected Areas

Country: Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Ghana

Duration: "from the date of signing this contract (11/01/94) to the date of approval of the final report (it has to be submitted at the latest 8 months after the signature of the contract: 11/09/94)"

The theme of this study is the organisation and management of the Tropical Forest Protected Areas in four pilot countries of Central and Western Africa (Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Ghana). management of such areas in the pilot countries will be analysed under the following aspects: institutional capacity and organisation; availability, from national resources, of manpower, equipment and current budget; revenue generation.

Objectives:

To improve the knowledge on the sustainability of the efforts done in conserving tropical forests, particularly as regards the development of possible sources of revenue, the identification of the most cost-efficient management techniques, and the related aspects of institutional capacity building in respect of conservation in Africa.

Activities:

1) Field Study

• Analyse the organisation of the national institutions responsible for the management of Protected Areas in tropical Forests of the target countries;
• Develop case studies of tropical Forest-protected Areas of each target country (Réserve de Dja in Cameroon, parc naturel de Odzala in Congo, Réserve de Sette-Cama et Réserve de Lope Okanda in Gabon, Bia National Park, Anka Reserve and Shai Hills Reserve in Ghana).

2) Comparative analysis and development guidelines

• Compare the organisation and resources available to the Conservation Authorities in the target countries;
• Identify the more performing management practices and examine the possibility of applying them in other countries;
• Compare revenue-generation sources, methods and potential;
• Analyse the potential to develop regional co-operation for Institutional capacity building in relation to protected Areas Management in tropical Forests;
• Develop guidelines and recommendations for the efficient management of such areas and for the contribution of donor-funded activities to Institution building in this respect.

Results expected:

Develop guidelines and recommendations in respect of the management of such areas with a focus on:

• Institutional capacity building and on how aid projects for tropical forest conservation or,
• Incorporating a Forest Conservation component as a mitigating measure for the environmental impact.

Beneficiaries:

Institutions, protected areas management specialist, foresters.

Implementation strategy:

Team leader (protected areas management specialist, forester, junior experts in Africa and in Europe) Field mission and subsequent comparative analysis and processing of the data collected in the field.

Final Report of December 1994.

• Part 1: "Interprétation des données; conclusions et recommandations"
• Part 2: "Le contexte national et les Institutions responsables des aires protégées au Cameroon, en République Centrafricaine et au Gabon".
• Part 3: "les études des cas"

The three parts of the report give a complete and satisfactory scenarios of the tropical forest protected areas studied developing guidelines and recommendations in respect of the management of such areas as requested by the contract conditions. This should be a valid instrument to be utilised, in order to identify the more performing management practices, by: National Authorities (Part 1 and part 2), EU services (part 1 and 3) to examine the possibility of applying them in other countries; NGOs (part 1 concerning "Trust Funds" and part 3, administrative (part 3).

It underlines how the economic evaluation of management costs and financial viability of protected areas have not been studied. The only indicators available at the moment are the ratio "budget/Kmē" and "Kmē/agents" which cannot take in account the different problems of conservation and the specific context.

In order to improve the protected areas and projects management, it is suggested:

1. to develop ad hoc indicators for management costs of protected areas in African tropical forest;
2. to improve the interpretation methodology of the above mentioned factors in relation to the principal problems found;
3. to develop standard references for investments;
4. to develop, from the first phases of projects implementation, costs and benefits models adapted to the situation analysed; to identify precisely measures to be adopted in order to realise short-term/long-term forecasts and to follow progress done in this sector.