Places
Congo Basin

Congo Basin

Places
Congo Basin

Congo Basin

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Facts
Species
People
Threats
What WWF is Doing
How You Can Help

Facts

The Congo Basin makes up one of the most biodiverse regions on Earth. At 500 million acres, it is larger than the state of Alaska and stands as the world’s second-largest tropical forest.

Continent
Africa
Species
Mountain gorilla, Bonobo, Chimpanzee, Forest elephant

The Congo Basin forests span around 500 million acres,¹ an area larger than Alaska, and cover six countries: Cameroon, Central African Republic (CAR), Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Republic of Congo (RoC), Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. Accounting for over 70% of Africa’s tropical forests, the region is a hot spot for biodiversity, including the critically endangered forest elephant and the largest number and diversity of great ape species.

The basin’s forest, marine, and freshwater ecosystems are some of the Earth’s most important—encompassing a rich mosaic of rivers, dense forests, savannas, and wetlands, including the world’s biggest tropical peatlands.² These ecosystems provide services critical to the well-being of people locally and globally.

The colossal scale of the Congo Basin and the relative intactness of its habitats contribute to its extraordinary vitality and species richness. Its iconic wildlife, including gorillas, forest elephants, chimpanzees, and buffalo, have ample space to roam. They are part of a thriving web of life, alongside thousands of other animal and plant species that share the forests. The basin’s lush array of trees and tropical plants also allows it to absorb massive amounts of carbon, making it the planet’s largest remaining tropical carbon sink.³

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How conservation in Dzanga-Sangha supports people

Park and WWF-supported NGOs provide employment, education, health care, and human rights assistance to local people—many of them Indigenous—which contribute to regional security.

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Magazine spread with man walking in forest

Species

two gorillas huddled together in Dzanga Sangha, Congo Basin

In a world where the average species population has declined 73% since 1970,⁴ the astonishing biodiversity in the Congo Basin is one of the reasons it is a focus of WWF’s conservation work. The Congo Basin is home to one in five of Earth’s living species, including at least 400 mammal species, 1,000 species of birds, and 700 species of fish.⁵ Many endangered species roam the forests, including the critically endangered forest elephant and multiple species of great apes. Some 10,000 species of tropical plants grow there, 30% of which are found nowhere else on Earth.⁶

People & Communities

four women stand together representing the Mbanzi Women's Association. Mbanzi, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Women in the Mbanzi Women's Association in Mbanzi, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The Congo Basin is vital to human life, inside and beyond the forests’ borders. The regional population across the six countries is estimated at over 157 million people,⁷ of which some 60 million people rely directly on Congo Basin forests for food, medicine, materials, and shelter.⁸ Human population growth in the region and neighboring countries is projected to increase rapidly in coming decades and, when coupled with climate change impacts, could put increasing pressure on the basin’s natural resources and ecosystems.

Among the 150 ethnic groups in the Congo Basin, the BaAka, BaKa, BaMbuti, Efe, and other Indigenous peoples have lived there for centuries and are profoundly connected to the ecosystem. They possess vast, in-depth knowledge of the forests, local animals, and medicinal plants. They also serve as the basin’s custodians and defenders. We partner with these peoples for the survival of these magnificent forests, which face threats from the pressures of illegal hunting for food (bushmeat); poaching for the illegal wildlife trade (particularly elephant ivory and pangolin scales); unsustainable and illegal logging; the expansion of roads and other infrastructure; unsustainable expansion of farming; and mining and fossil fuel extraction.

Threats

areila view of forest in Salonga National Park

Despite ever-increasing recognition of the Congo Basin’s value and the crucial services it provides, the region faces numerous threats, as reflected by the high degree of poaching and escalating rates of forest degradation and deforestation. The Congo Basin has abundant natural resources, such as timber, petroleum, and minerals. Damaging and unsustainable extraction practices cast an ominous shadow over the future of this vast area. In addition, excessively high levels of ivory poaching and commercial bushmeat hunting are wiping out the resident wildlife, especially charismatic megafauna.

Poverty remains a serious challenge in the region. Because of a lack of alternatives, many people still depend on unsustainable agriculture or other destructive practices for their livelihoods. Addressing threats to the basin will require inclusive solutions that fully recognize that socioeconomic development is a high priority for the area.

Demand for Natural Resources

Global demand for the Congo Basin’s natural resources, including wood, oil and gas, diamonds, gold, iron, and coltan (used to make cell phones), continues to rise. A large and growing percentage of the Congo Basin is under concession to logging and mining companies.⁹ While these sectors are important sources of employment, those who come to work in the region’s extractive industries put pressure on the forests. They often rely on subsistence methods to meet their basic needs, cutting down trees for fuel and hunting animals for food. Related large-scale infrastructure projects, such as road and dam construction, lead to deforestation and habitat fragmentation and give people increasing access to resources in remote forest areas.

Illegal Wildlife Trade

The regional commercial bushmeat trade and poaching of species such as elephants, pangolins, and parrots are the leading causes of wildlife loss in the Congo Basin.

The commercial and unsustainable bushmeat trade for urban consumers is driven by a burgeoning market for animals such as monkeys, antelopes, gorillas, and bonobos.¹⁰ In the DRC alone, people consume more than 1 million tons of bushmeat annually. Regulating the bushmeat trade is far from simple. In remote areas, bushmeat is the primary source of protein and income for families. This can be sustainable as long as the demand for wild meat in the cities is addressed. Collaborating with governments and urban consumers to promote alternative sources of protein and create alternative sources of income for commercial bushmeat hunters in rural areas are the primary ways to reverse this devastating trend.

Threatened and endangered species in the Congo Basin also face international demand for their parts and products, including illegal elephant ivory, pangolin scales, and endangered bird species.¹¹ This is threatening the survival of many wildlife species, which is leading to local extinctions and risking the loss of forest elephants in their entirety.

Deforestation

Two-thirds of global forest cover loss occurs in the tropics and subtropics, where vast clusters of deforestation hot spots—also known as “deforestation fronts”—are destroying the important ecosystem services forests provide. The Congo Basin is one of 24 hot spots around the world.¹²

The amount of Congo Basin forest disturbed by human activities has increased annually since 2009, the Observatory for Central Africa Forests reports. At this rate, 27% of the region’s forests will be wiped out by 2050.¹³

What WWF Is Doing

Ossolo Dacko, a BaAka tracker for the western lowland gorilla habituation program, Dzanga-Sangha Special Reserve, Central African Republic

WWF works with governments, Indigenous peoples, local communities, and other stakeholders to advance the protection and responsible use of natural resources in ways that respect human rights and support human well-being in tandem with nature conservation. We strive to ensure the area’s forest and freshwater ecosystems continue functioning as a primary source of sustainable livelihoods.

However, the Congo Basin’s forests will continue to face threats from climate change and human activity. The pressures from human activity will be compounded by demographic growth in the Congo Basin and peripheral countries. These threats and predicted impacts demonstrate the need to design and implement inclusive and participatory forms of natural resource management and use, including sustainable livelihood activities.

WWF advocates for recognition of these forests’ value and tangible support for their conservation by the global community. We also engage on the ground in priority landscapes within the Congo Basin’s forest ecosystems by collaborating with local stakeholders and partners to address threats and establish means to conserve biodiversity and promote inclusive development.

Sustainable landscapes

Protected areas are the cornerstone of WWF’s approach to protecting and sustainably managing the Congo Basin’s high-priority landscapes. These landscapes include Ntoukou Pikounda National Park and its periphery in the RoC, Dzanga-Sangha Protected Areas and surrounding forests in the CAR, and Salonga National Park in the DRC. Partners also implement similar efforts in other high-priority landscapes in the region.

Ntokou Pikounda, RoC

Ntokou Pikounda National Park, part of the Dja-Odzala-Minkebe Tri-National landscape, and its periphery are forest elephant strongholds, with around 1,100 in the area. The park also contains high numbers of western lowland gorillas (around 11,000) and central chimpanzees (around 4,000) and harbors important forest clearings and carbon-rich peatlands. Additionally, Ntokou Pikounda houses the only known population of the rediscovered Bouvier’s red colobus, previously thought extinct. WWF works with the Congolese government to strengthen park management efforts.

Dzanga-Sangha, CAR

The Dzanga-Sangha Protected Areas complex, part of the Sangha Tri-National landscape, is a stronghold for great apes and forest elephants and is world renowned for its bais (natural forest clearings) and habituated western lowland gorillas. WWF was instrumental in its creation and has comanaged the complex in a unique partnership with the government of the CAR since 1990.

Salonga, DRC

Salonga National Park is one of the largest parks in the world (larger than the state of Maryland). It contains vast tracts of intact forest, sequestering substantial amounts of carbon. The park is home to one of the last viable populations of forest elephants remaining in the DRC and is a stronghold for bonobos, containing a significant percentage of this great ape population. WWF has worked in Salonga since 2004 and currently helps comanage the park with the government.

Maintaining the integrity of large-scale landscapes like the Congo Basin is essential for sustaining biodiversity and enabling effective climate action. It requires reaching beyond political borders across the six countries with direct stakes in protecting the region.

WWF is a founding member of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership, a coalition of almost 120 partners created in 2002 to enable collaboration on forest management, biodiversity conservation, and poverty reduction in the region. Our role includes helping craft intergovernmental agreements that allow free movement of park staff across borders and joint patrols to bolster antipoaching operations.

Creating Sustainable Practices

A road through a forest concession in Ngombe Pikounda National Park managed with FSC

The Congo Basin needs better development strategies and management practices to ensure natural resources are used, managed, and shared equitably and sustainably. Promoting good governance at different scales and creating enabling conditions and policy frameworks are vital for more inclusive and sustainable regional development. This involves encouraging coordination among multiple stakeholders on everything from economic planning to science-driven decision-making. It also requires cooperation to avoid negative impacts on forests and other highly biodiverse ecosystems.

For example, advocating for the standards set by the international nonprofit Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) is one way to advance responsible forest management. In the Congo Basin, FSC promotes low-impact logging practices while leaving some areas undisturbed, as well as closing off roads and controlling access to reduce poaching risks and maintain wildlife populations. In fact, a 2024 study published in the scientific journal Nature found significantly higher populations of medium- to large-sized mammals within FSC-certified forests in Gabon and the RoC compared to non-certified ones. The findings serve as a robust indicator of FSC’s effectiveness not only in conserving wildlife but also in fostering environments where economic development can proceed without sacrificing ecological integrity. Earlier research has also demonstrated that FSC certification is beneficial for local communities and workers.¹⁴

Protecting the Congo Basin necessitates partnering with the local communities and Indigenous peoples who depend on the forests for their livelihoods and serve as its custodians and defenders. We work with farmers to adopt new varieties of crops and innovative methods to grow them; help local women improve their livelihoods through sustainable farming and other programs; and advance gorilla-based tourism that protects national parks and helps local communities.

Curbing Wildlife Crime

young elephant running ahead of its mother appears as a blur

The poaching of protected species for illegal international markets in wildlife products such as elephant ivory remains a profound problem across the Congo Basin, even within national parks and other protected areas. The international trade in protected species, such as elephants, pangolins, and African grey parrots, has reached levels that endanger the survival of these species. WWF is helping fight illegal trade by bolstering antipoaching operations and helping improve people’s standards of living. WWF also supports law enforcement efforts to disrupt internationally operating wildlife crime syndicates and run consumer awareness campaigns internationally to deter the purchase of illegal wildlife products from the Congo Basin like elephant ivory or pangolin scales.

Successful Collaboration Across Borders

Ensuring protection of the Congo Basin requires a massive effort that reaches beyond political borders, especially when six countries have a direct stake. As part of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership, we collaborate with local governments and communities to sustainably manage the forests and protect wildlife.

We help create agreements between governments to allow for free movement of park staff across borders and joint patrols, bolstering antipoaching operations. The success of this approach is evident in the Sangha Tri-National, a UNESCO World Heritage site, that stretches across the borders of three countries and three protected areas: Dzanga-Sangha in the CAR, Nouabale-Ndoki in the RoC, and Lobeke in Cameroon. Our partnerships also allow us to better address the needs of local communities that depend on the forests, supporting them in stewarding their resources and improving their livelihoods.

Our work, together with the African Wildlife Foundation and Fauna & Flora, through the International Gorilla Conservation Program (IGCP) has supported the recovery of mountain gorillas and other species through international, multipartner, and transboundary collaboration. WWF was one of the founding organizations that helped establish IGCP in 1991 to tackle the urgent threats facing mountain gorillas and their habitats, such as in the DRC’s Virunga National Park. Conservation efforts have helped restore mountain gorilla populations in Virunga Massif, which have grown to 604 individuals, up from 480 individuals in 2010. This puts the total global wild gorilla population at over 1,000 individuals.

Supporting Local Communities

two men overlook a forest clearing as part of a community biomonitoring project

Great ape-based tourism, like the gorilla tourism in Dzanga-Sangha, helps raise funds to protect national parks and help local communities. Tourism provides significant employment opportunities in often remote areas where other opportunities are scarce. In the DRC, WWF introduced farmers to new types of crops and innovative methods to grow them so that farming operations do not encroach upon nearby forests or harm wildlife. WWF has also collaborated with local women to improve their livelihoods and their children’s nutrition by encouraging their participation in the new farming program. WWF continues to support local communities in conserving their resources and improving livelihoods.