Democratic Republic of Congo – A local nongovernmental organization has taken on a role never before granted to a homegrown group in the modern history of the country. Strong Roots Congo will share management duties at Itombwe Nature Reserve in South Kivu province with the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature. The arrangement marks a shift from past practices that often excluded communities from decisions about protected lands. ([1])
The Partnership Details
The agreement establishes a public-private partnership between Strong Roots Congo and the national wildlife authority. Under the deal, the organization will help oversee daily operations and long-term planning at the reserve. Founder Dominique Bikaba described the selection as an honor and noted that officials had watched the group’s earlier efforts closely. Those efforts focused on building trust with residents living near the protected area. The move follows years of work by Strong Roots to link separate conservation zones through community agreements. Officials appear to have viewed that track record as evidence that local leadership can succeed where older models struggled.
Community Land and Corridor Work
Strong Roots has already obtained rights to nearly 600,000 hectares of community land. The area forms a corridor connecting Kahuzi-Biega National Park with Itombwe Nature Reserve. The organization now aims to expand that total to one million hectares through additional agreements. Such corridors are intended to allow wildlife movement while giving residents a direct stake in protection. This approach differs from earlier conservation efforts that sometimes removed people from their traditional lands. By placing communities at the center of planning, the group has sought to reduce friction that has long affected protected areas across the country.
Policy Changes Behind the Decision
The partnership arrives three months after the Democratic Republic of Congo adopted a National Forest Policy. That policy formally recognizes the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities to manage forest areas. The recognition provides a legal foundation for the current arrangement and signals a broader willingness to share authority. Many existing reserves were established through processes that displaced residents, creating lasting tensions with park staff. The new policy and the Strong Roots agreement together point toward a different model that treats community involvement as essential rather than optional.
What Comes Next
The co-management structure will be watched closely by other conservation groups and government agencies. Success could encourage similar partnerships elsewhere in the country. Failure, by contrast, might reinforce older doubts about local capacity. For now, the focus remains on turning the legal agreement into practical results on the ground.
