Valentin Omasombo Wotoko

Protected Area Manager
Congo Heartland

 

"My AWF supervisor Jef Dupain had given me fair warning. 'Valentin,' he said, 'you will be working to create the first protected area in a landscape long scarred by political instability. But if we are to protect the bonobo,' he told me, 'it’s a job that has to be done.'

"For two years I lived in the remote rainforest, working to bring this reserve about. The work was hugely important. Long before the civil war broke out in 1995, the wildlife authority (ICCN) had designated the Lomako Forest as a priority zone for bonobo and forest conservation.

"There were times when I felt like the weight of the world — or at least of the forest — was on my shoulders. There were biological and socio-economic surveys and negotiations with the local people. And it was complicated. The Befale and Bongandanga people, for example, fought for ownership of the reserve. Others were simply opposed to conservation, and had to be convinced of its benefits. Some local politicians even tried to undermine it by attacking my character. At other times I suffered severe bouts of malaria with no medical care available.

"But when the Democratic Republic of the Congo made the creation of the reserve official it was a historic landmark not just for conservation in the Congo, but for the people — since their needs have been carefully recognized in every stage of the process. While there are years of hard work ahead of us, the important thing is that the bonobo has a safe haven. And the landscape of the Lomako Forest will be protected in perpetuity."