In February of this year, we laid out the Wildlife Conservation Society’s vision for Kahuzi-Biega National Park (KBNP) to develop a new paradigm and turn a history of injustices against Indigenous Peoples into a model for effective rights-based conservation. And in April of 2022 we signed a new public-private partnership (PPP) agreement as a necessary step to effect change and realize this vision. Since taking over the management of the Park, we have developed an implementation strategy for both the short and long-term. In the immediate and medium term, we have prioritized the building of transparent and equitable governance and revenue sharing mechanisms, the design of equitable and culturally appropriate systems of natural resource management, discussions on customary and user rights, and the design of a reconciliation process between the Batwa and government to discuss longstanding grievances and injustices. Essential to our success for both the Park and the people is the role of traditional leaders in seeking to overcome the current deep divide and polarized viewpoints in order to protect the Park’s rich biodiversity and respect human rights. It also requires the political will and commitment of the state with support from the wider international community to sustain peace, stability and good governance.
The PPP came into effect on May 12, 2022. From this point, joint operations between ICCN rangers and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) were suspended inside the Park as discussions on a framework of understanding based on human rights were initiated. For an army unit to be stationed inside the park it must be human rights vetted with a clear separation of duties and responsibilities from the Park’s rangers and their operations. In keeping with the past, no WCS staff has, can, or will participate in any counter-insurgency activity conducted by the Congolese to root out armed groups found within the boundaries of the Park. Park rangers will conduct patrols to monitor acts of deforestation, poaching, destruction of park habitat, and illegal appropriation of forest land for agriculture, and enforce related conservation laws. Any arrests made for these reasons will be followed under strict human rights compliance and standard operating procedures against which their performance will be monitored. We commit to full transparency in Park management and we will communicate the results of management actions through official and regular updates on the official Kahuzi-Biega National Park website. WCS and the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN) will also improve the pay and working conditions of the park rangers so that they can perform their duties with professionalism, respect, and dignity.
Building on prior experience and consultations, WCS is currently setting up a Grievance Redress Mechanism with the ability for any third party or individual to submit a complaint. A robust verification and investigation mechanism will ensure the complaint reaches a conclusion with a recommendation for remedy where appropriate. An on-site doctor and psychologist are available for people with claims of human rights abuse and we are working with local partners to ensure referrals to specialists can be made for any allegations of sexual exploitation, abuse, or rape, should they arise. This free facility is also made available to those injured in road crossings or traffic accidents within the Park.
To improve accountability towards the public, the Park Management has opened a channel of communication and information sharing with communities and civil society actors, which the Park Director is directly participating in. Apart from hearing from communities, the Park management will engage regularly through quarterly partner coordination meetings, semi-annual site coordination meetings, and various civil society engagements. Importantly, the Park will share regular updates through newsletters, community radio, and social media updates. Such information sharing will also seek to clarify any potential misunderstandings created by false information or inaccurate reporting.
The Park’s 12-month road map includes the establishment of joint (ICCN-WCS) human rights unit at the Park headquarters. Human rights training will be provided to all staff working for the Park along with mentorship and refresher courses. We will also revitalize the community-conservation committees (CCC) to ensure stronger representation of Batwa communities, youth, and women to provide a formal mechanism for the participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in natural resource governance and provide feedback to the Park Management.
A Board for the governance of the Park is currently being constituted with four WCS-nominated members, three ICCN-nominated members and two civil society members. Additionally, the initial Board composition will include one member from the Batwa peoples, as well as one from local communities in the southern sector of the Park. These two will serve as co-leads within the Board subcommittee to develop a consultative mechanism for the nomination of subsequent Batwa and local community Board members. An Advisory Committee will also be set up under the auspices of the Board with broad participation from Indigenous Peoples and local communities around the Park.
As we lay the institutional governance framework and look beyond twelve months, there are several areas that require careful design and long-term engagement including a reconciliation process, development of ecosystem services, long-term livelihood strategies, and dialogue with the Batwa peoples over their customary rights in relation to the Park.
We are currently assessing how to formally move forward with the implementation of the Bukavu Declaration on the High-Level Dialogue on the Process of Sustainable Protection of Kahuzi-Biega National Park and Peaceful Cohabitation between the Park, Indigenous Peoples, and other Riparian Communities (the Bukavu Roadmap). This agreement emerged from the past surge of violent conflict and was signed in 2019 by various Batwa clan leaders and their accompanying organizations (REPALEF Sud-Kivu, UEFA, CAMV, Strongroots, PIDP, ANAPAC), the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, National Deputies, and Provincial Deputies of the Congolese government. Several of the actions from the Bukavu Roadmap have been identified as priorities in the Park’s new 5-year strategic plan, including the provision of direct and sustainable support to communities around the Park (both Batwa and other communities). Support for community-based management of their territories through CCCs, participatory demarcation, and local development plans will be initiated within the next 12 months and are expected to be completed within the next thirty months.
Some aspects of the Bukavu Roadmap have already been actioned. For example, the new management agreement has favorably revised the current terms of benefit sharing from tourism, with 70 percent of total revenue retained at site (compared to 50 percent previously) of which 20 percent will be allocated for community development. A full evaluation of the tourism business model will be conducted in September 2022 to ensure it is culturally appropriate and respectful, including recommendations for the development and implementation of a comprehensive and equitable benefits sharing strategy.
Essential to any meaningful progress over the long-term is the importance of addressing past injustices, and the multi-generational hurt to shield the next generation from absorbing such legacies in order to heal and prevent future conflicts. In the case of Kahuzi-Biega it is important to bring in elders from the community, traditional leaders, young people, and people with credibility across the landscape to help address the distrust and polarization that exists. Over the next twelve months, WCS will design and set up a reconciliation process between the Batwa clans, the ICCN, FARDC and provincial and national government. Previous dialogue and agreement processes such as the Bukavu Roadmap and the Whakatane Process will serve as foundations to be built upon. We anticipate this process, once established, would be facilitated by a neutral and independent third party and run in parallel to the strategic management plan and its associated activities. The long-term goal of this process would be to build trust and move towards a durable peace between the Batwa and the State.
In terms of more immediate action in the area of conflict resolution, WCS will also hire a conflict resolution point person by the end of this year with good knowledge of the Kahuzi situation who will devise an early warning system and work with NGOs to keep track of emerging issues and potential conflict triggers, liaise with the Park’s Grievance Redress Mechanism to understand complaints that have a dimension of social conflict, devise a strategy for local level conflict resolution, and work with partners to deploy conflict resolution resources effectively in and around the Park.
As we draw upon our experience of working with Indigenous peoples, local communities, and protected area management, we are consistently reminded that the path to equitable progress in Kahuzi-Biega National Park is neither straightforward nor easy. Although our remit lies within the Park, the adjacent areas and broader context of violence, inequalities, and discrimination all must be addressed through various forms of partnership. These are essential to tackling the long-standing structural and social inequalities and discrimination faced by the Batwa Indigenous Peoples.
We strongly believe that recognition of customary rights, Indigenous knowledge, and a key role in decision making will help us build towards a future that realizes the Batwa peoples’ vision and sets a new framework for the Park, where both people and the Park not only survive but thrive collectively.
Sushil Raj, Executive Director, Rights + Communities, Wildlife Conservation Society
Deo Kujirakwinja, Park Director, Kahuzi-Biega National Park