akanda-description
Name: Akanda
Country: Gabon
Type and IUCN Category: National Park, IUCN category II.
Size (ha): 53,780
Date of creation: 30 August 2002 (decree No. 608/PR/MEFEPEPN)
CARPE landscape: Not part of any CARPE landscape. RAMSAR site since 2006. RAPAC pilot site.
Management plan: Not publicly available.
Local communities: According to information from 2010, there are a number of fishing villages located inside the national park, with a known population of around 500 people, many of whom are Nigerian (RAPAC, 2010). Recent reports indicate that three of these villages have since been relocated (see Impacts section).
Administration: The park is managed by the Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux (ANPN) with financial and technical support from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).
Biodiversity information: Akanda is composed of mangrove and tidal beach habitats. The park is internationally important as a site for migratory birds and is home to the largest bird populations in Gabon (RAPAC, 2010). It also has a significant population of sea turtles (Mallon et al., 2015). Akanda harbours a high density of mangroves of great ecological importance (RAPAC, 2010, Gabon Portal).
Neighbouring and overlapping extractive industries (Mapping for Rights):
A mining permit (managed by BHP since 2007) covers the whole park, as does oil permit AT99.
Information available on funding:
(Please note that some of these grants may be covering several protected areas or landscapes.)
Akanda is one of the “Pilot Sites” of the Central African Protected Areas Network (RAPAC, as per its French acronym) funded by the European Union under the ECOFAC programme. However, no information is available on whether Akanda has received ECOFAC funding and, if so, how much.
Sustainable and concerted conservation of the Akanda mangrove (“Conservation durable et concertée de la mangrove d’Akanda”, PPI1), (2008-2010)
Funder: French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM)
Objective: Conservation of the Akanda mangrove
Grant manager: Centre d’action pour le développement durable et l’environnement (CADDE)
Project area: Akanda National Park
Funds: Approximately $44,324 (€41,415), of which $33,178 (€31,000) were granted by FFEM. Other donors are unknown.