Covering a surface area of 1.4 million hectares, if one includes the Tamou and Dosso wildlife reserves in Niger and the game reserve of Djona in Benin, the “W” Park in Niger is part of the group of contiguous protected areas covering 5 million hectares. As well as the “W” Park in Niger, which straddles Niger, Benin, and Burkina Faso, this area, considered one of the largest transboundary park complexes in West Africa, includes the Arly Park, the wildlife reserves of Singou and Pama in Burkina Faso, and the National Park of Pendjari in Benin.
Map 1 – All contiguous protected areas of the “W” Park complex
Given the diversity of its ecosystems, and a level of rainfall that varies from the north to the south (500 to 1000 mm. per year), the “W” Park provides a unique homing ground for great African migratory wild animals. It is for this reason that for the past 75 years, significant efforts have been made to uphold its integrity and preserve the biological diversity existing within it.
During the colonial era, the park was managed by a single decision-making body based in Dakar. However, from 1960 onward, the moment each country acceded to independence, it individually tended to withdraw into itself to concentrate on its own particular part of the complex. During the 1980s, however, given the fluctuating boundaries of the park, and limited means allocated by the authorities involved, the three countries set up a process of cooperation that was made official in 1984 by the signing of a regional agreement for the prohibition of poaching.
This agreement was to be the starting point of a protracted and wavering collaboration at a regional level among the independent and sovereign states of Benin, Burkina Faso, and Niger; of their attempt to set up a system of management and preservation for the “W” Park; and more generally, for the entire park complex, including the “W” Park, the Arly Park, and the Pendjari Park (WAP Park Complex).
Thus, 15 years after the initial agreement, the time has come to assess the results of this process of cooperation. The intention was to slow down the loss of biological diversity, through the installation of an effective and sustainable system of transboundary management of ecosystems and natural resources in the WAP park complex, both in general, and in the “W” Park in particular.
After presenting the area in general terms, the following chapters will include an assessment of transboundary management as it has been implemented, a look at the lessons to be learnt, and provide a prospective analysis in order to define guidelines for the setting-up of a sustainable, effective system of transboundary management.