location: West Africa

location: West Africa

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Francis Hallé, the botanist who took a raft into the rainforest canopy
- The richest part of a tropical rainforest is often the hardest to study: the canopy, where much of its biodiversity lives beyond reach from the ground. Francis Hallé helped change that by finding ways to observe the treetops without cutting them down.
- A French botanist, biologist, and illustrator, he became known for the “canopy raft,” a platform set onto the crowns of trees by a balloon. It turned the upper forest from a place described in theory into one examined up close.
- Hallé was an expert in tropical forest ecology and “the architecture of trees,” a way of identifying trees by how they grow and branch. He paired field science with drawing and plain speech, and he was unsparing about the forces driving deforestation.
- In his later years he pursued a long-term plan to restore a “primeval forest” in Western Europe, left to evolve with minimal human interference over centuries. It was, in his view, a test of whether societies could think beyond the political moment.

For two of the world’s most at-risk primates, threats abound and the future looks grim
- Preuss’s red colobus is found in two populations in West Africa — roughly 3,000 individuals in the Korup–Cross River forest block and none confirmed in the Yabassi Key Biodiversity Area for more than a decade — and faces intense pressure from hunting and habitat loss.
- The Bangka slow loris, restricted to Bangka Island in Indonesia has not been systematically studied for decades and has suffered extensive habitat loss from mining and forest conversion.
- Proper field studies and conservation approaches used for other slow loris species could provide a road map for assessing and protecting the Bangka slow loris.
- For Preuss’s red colobus, a regional action plan is advancing in Nigeria, where monitoring and community outreach are underway, but implementation in Cameroon has been hampered by ongoing civil unrest around Korup National Park.

Hopes and fears as Guinea exports iron ore from Simandou mines
- After decades of planning, the first shipment of iron ore from Guinea’s Simandou mines is on its way to China.
- The shipment marks the beginning of an era in which Guinea is expected to become one of the world’s leading producers of iron ore.
- Environmental advocates say that damage from the mines so far has gone largely unaddressed.

Ghana repeals legislation that opened forest reserves to mining
- The Ghanaian government repealed Legislative Instrument 2462, which had empowered the president to allow mining in forest reserves previously closed to the extractive activity, including globally significant biodiversity areas.
- An act of Parliament enacted in December effected the change, with green groups describing it as a major victory for forest protection and environmental governance.
- Some experts cautioned that Ghana’s forests continue to face serious threats, stressing that concrete reforms in forestry governance must accompany the revocation.

Rare bats at risk as iron ore mine advances in Guinea’s Nimba Mountains
- Guinea’s government is assessing the potential impacts of a mining project in the Nimba Mountains, in a biodiversity hotspot that has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site while being threatened by mining.
- U.S. mining company Ivanhoe Atlantic recently submitted an environmental impact assessment for an iron ore mine at a site that is the only known home of two unique bat species, as well as critically endangered chimpanzees and threatened toads and frogs.
- Conservationists say open-pit mining in this ecologically sensitive region could spell extinction for Lamotte’s roundleaf bat and the orange-furred Nimba Mountain bat if their forest habitat is disturbed for mine infrastructure.

Clark Lungren and the case for compromise in conservation
- Clark Lungren spent most of his life in Burkina Faso, where he worked on conservation not as an external intervention but as a local, becoming a naturalized citizen and embedding himself in village life. His authority came less from formal credentials than from long familiarity with people and place.
- He was best known for his role in the recovery of the Nazinga area, where wildlife rebounded after communities were granted controlled hunting rights in exchange for protection. The arrangement, initially dismissed by many experts, proved durable.
- Lungren argued consistently that conservation would only last if it aligned with local governance and incentives, a view reflected in community-managed hunting zones and buffer areas around protected lands. He favored workable compromises over strict orthodoxy.
- Active well into his seventies, he continued training, research, and advocacy through a demonstration farm near Ouagadougou. The systems he helped build persisted in a region where many conservation efforts were short-lived.

Huge ‘blue carbon’ offsetting project takes root in the mangroves of Sierra Leone
- In October, a wholly owned subsidiary of West Africa Blue, a Mauritius-based company, signed a “blue carbon” offsetting deal with the 124 communities on the island of Sherbro in Sierre Leone.
- The agreement will reward the communities financially for conserving and restoring their mangroves, which act as a carbon sink.
- The funds will be generated by selling offsets on the voluntary carbon credit market, with revenues shared between West Africa Blue, the communities and the government of Sierra Leone.
- Though carbon offsetting projects have been subject to criticism in the past, community members on Sherbro say they’re optimistic about the improvements to their livelihoods that the project could bring.

West and Central Africa tackle coastal erosion
- Coastal erosion along the coastline of West and Central Africa has been attributed to both natural causes and to human causes, including infrastructure development.
- With support from international finance agencies, governments cross the region have favored intensive engineering solutions to attempt to protect eroding shorelines.
- Environmentalists say nature-based interventions such as restoring mangrove forests that can stabilize soil and protect marine biodiversity.

Artisanal fishers in Liberia question benefits of new tracking devices from government
- The Liberian government earlier this year distributed 400 automatic identification system (AIS) transponders to small-scale fishers in the counties of Grand Cape Mount, Grand Bassa, Margibi and Montserrado.
- The devices transmit a vessel’s position and speed via radio signals, and Liberian authorities say they hope it will help in speeding up responses to vessels that are in distress.
- However, many small-scale fishers appear reluctant to adopt the new device, with some saying they would prefer GPS-equipped devices that let them track their own location.
- The Liberia Artisanal Fishermen Association (LAFA), an advocacy group, blames the low adoption rate on the inadequate involvement of fishers during the design and rollout of the project.

As fish catches fall and seas rise, Douala’s residents join efforts to restore mangroves
- Cameroon’s coastal fisheries are in decline, leaving fishers with dwindling catches — a crisis linked directly to the depletion of the country’s mangroves, experts say, which are breeding grounds for fish.
- The expansion of urban settlements, conversion of coastal land for agriculture, and sand extraction drives mangrove loss in Cameroon; another key driver is the use of mangrove wood for smoking fish.
- The Cameroon government and NGOs have set themselves an ambitious goal of restoring 1,000 hectares (nearly 2,500 acres) of mangrove forests by 2050.
- A key strategy involves engaging local communities in the replanting process and providing alternative livelihoods, such as urban farming and beekeeping, to reduce dependence on mangrove wood.

Wildlife and communities bear the cost as Simandou rail corridor advances across Guinea
- A 650-km (400-mi) railway corridor is being built that will link the iron ore mine in eastern Guinea to the country’s Atlantic port of Moribaya.
- Its route crosses forests that are home to some of the last populations of forest elephants and western chimpanzees in the country, with NGOs warning of disruptions and fragmentation of vital habitat, putting several species at risk of local extinction.
- Villagers along the route also complain that dust and pollution have impacted their livelihoods, and that compensation has been delayed or incomplete.
- Experts and civil society actors are calling for a strategic environmental study and better implementation of environmental and social management plans.

Can two Amazons survive? Invisible e-waste is poisoning the world
- E-waste, which refers to discarded electrical or electronic devices, is the fastest growing domestic waste stream in the world, and it is highly toxic, threatening public health. Much of this e-waste, largely produced by rich countries, is dumped in poor countries, with Asia and Africa major destinations.
- Because poor countries mostly lack the highly sophisticated equipment and processes needed to dismantle and recycle these complex composite products safely, unskilled scrap workers, including children, plunder them for resalable components, often with a disastrous impact on their health and the environment.
- Increasingly, the torrent of discarded cell phones and obsolete computers is greatly exacerbated by invisible e-waste: a vast, varied plethora of microchip-containing products, ranging from vaping devices to e-readers, toys, smoke detectors, e-tire pressure gauges and chip-containing shoes and apparel.
- Invisible e-waste greatly adds to developing world recycling challenges. The U.N. Environment Programme warns that “the increasing proliferation of technological devices has skyrocketed the amount of electronic waste worldwide” with nations now facing “an environmental challenge of enormous dimensions.”

West Africa’s oceans get $68 million lifeline amid fisheries decline
A coalition of international organizations has launched the West Africa Sustainable Ocean Programme to tackle the region’s deepening fisheries decline. Led by the IUCN (the global wildlife conservation authority), Expertise France and the Fisheries Committee for the West Central Gulf of Guinea (FCWC), the WASOP initiative aims to curb illegal fishing, restore marine ecosystems, and […]
Sierra Leone communities sign carbon agreement based on carbon justice principles
- Hundreds of communities in Sierra Leone’s Bonthe district have signed a benefit-sharing carbon agreement with the Africa Conservation Initiative targeting the protection of mangroves in the Sherbro River Estuary.
- The agreement is based on “carbon justice principles” aimed at making carbon projects fairer for communities, such as a 40-50% gross revenue share; free, prior and informed consent, including transparency of financial information and buyers; and community-led stewardship of the mangroves.
- If implemented correctly, the agreement could address “deep-rooted issues of fairness,” experts say.

‘Not good’: Ocean losing its greenness, threatening food webs
- The ocean is losing its greenness, a new study has found: Global chlorophyll concentration, a proxy for phytoplankton biomass, declined over the past two decades, especially in coastal areas.
- Phytoplankton are the base of the marine food web, supporting fisheries and broader ecosystems, so their decline could have far-reaching implications, experts say.
- The phytoplankton decline could hurt coastal communities that live off the sea, and affect the ocean’s ability to act as a carbon sink, the authors say.

African summit seeks clean energy future to combat climate change impacts
- Nonstate actors have adopted the “Cotonou Declaration” at the Climate Chance Africa 2025 summit.
- The summit featured renewable energy commitments as well as a road map for integrating adaptation as a crucial step in addressing climate change.
- Benin is leading the way on climate resilience by anticipating and addressing the challenges posed by climate change.

Study finds deforestation fuels West Africa’s water crisis
A new study warns that deforestation across Ghana, Niger and Nigeria is intensifying West Africa’s water crisis, threatening the health and livelihoods of more than 122 million people. Drawing on 12 years of satellite data from 2013-2025, the joint report by WaterAid and Tree Aid finds a direct correlation between forest loss and the decline […]
As Ghana ships first ‘gold standard’ timber to EU, questions about FLEGT’s future remain (commentary)
- Ghana is the first country in Africa to be awarded a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) license, which is seen as the “gold standard” in the sustainable timber trade.
- The fate of many of Africa’s surviving forests could depend on its success, highlighted by an official meeting in Brussels this week that will mark the first shipment of timber from Ghana to the EU under the program — but a new op-ed wonders if it will it be the last.
- “If Ghana’s FLEGT license turns out to be the last, it would snatch defeat from the jaws of a famous victory. But there is also hope that Ghana’s groundbreaking system of timber traceability could help spur similar systems in other countries,” the author argues.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

At COP30, Africa can lead the way to a sustainable future — but will it? (commentary)
- With its growing focus on sustainable development and climate action, Africa has the potential to lead the way toward a more sustainable future, as seen in Nigeria’s recent submission of its third nationally determined contribution (NDC 3.0).
- COP30 this month in Belém, Brazil, should prioritize climate finance, which Africa needs to mobilize resources for the continent’s climate action.
- Africa requires support to build resilience and adapt to the impacts of climate change, and COP30 is a crucial platform to address these needs, building a more sustainable future for all.
- This commentary is part of Our Letters to the Future, a series produced by the Y. Eva Tan Conservation Reporting Fellows as their final fellowship project. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.

Nigeria passes tough new wildlife law; enforcement doubts remain
The Nigerian Parliament recently passed sweeping legislation to protect endangered wildlife from illegal trafficking. Once the president signs it into law, offenders could face fines of up to 12 million naira ($8,300) and up to 10 years in prison for trafficking elephant ivory, pangolin scales, and other products from threatened species. The bill, hailed as […]
A fisheries observer disappeared at sea. His family still waits for answers
- Samuel Abayateye, a 38-year-old fisheries observer from Ghana, vanished from the Marine 707 in 2023 while monitoring tuna catches. Six weeks later, a mutilated body washed ashore near his home, but authorities have never released DNA results or an autopsy report.
- Fisheries observers like Abayateye work alone at sea to record catches and report illegal practices, often among the very crews they monitor. Their role is vital to enforcing fishing laws but exposes them to isolation, threats, and violence.
- His disappearance echoes that of Emmanuel Essien, another observer who vanished after documenting illegal fishing on a Chinese-owned trawler. Both cases remain unsolved, part of a global pattern in which at least one observer dies or disappears each year.
- Ghana’s government still mandates observers on every industrial vessel, yet offers them little protection—no insurance, secure contracts, or emergency communication. Abayateye’s family continues to seek answers, while his body, if it is his, remains unburied.

Two years later, no closure for family of missing Ghanaian fisheries observer
- Samuel Abayateye, a father of two, tasked with monitoring a Ghana-flagged tuna-fishing vessel, was reported missing on Oct. 30, 2023.
- Two years on, his family still hasn’t receive any formal updates from the Ghanaian police or any other agency about what happened to Abayateye.
- The authorities haven’t shared the results of a DNA test on a body found a few weeks after Abayateye went missing, which the family believe was his.
- Mongabay made repeated attempts to contact the police, but didn’t receive a response about the case.

Senegal’s great green wall progress falters amid unfulfilled pledges: Study
- A recent study has examined the progress to realize Africa’s Great Green Wall initiative in Senegal, which is often hailed as the model for this continent-wide project.
- The study finds Senegal has achieved encouraging social and economic results — but far less success on the ecological front.
- The study’s authors, echoing complaints from African officials, say that far less money has actually reached implementing countries and organizations than has been announced at global forums.

Study reveals overlooked cultural threat to wildcats across Africa
- The role that cultural demand plays in driving hunting and trade of many species of wildcats is poorly understood.
- Research commissioned by the wildcat conservation NGO Panthera found widespread use across Africa by traditional leaders, healers and participants in cultural ceremonies. Leopards were the most commonly identified species, followed by lions, servals and cheetahs.
- The researchers say recognizing the cultural contexts in which carnivores are used can help conservationists design interventions that are culturally sensitive and locally relevant.

West Africa’s leopards now officially endangered after 50% population crash
There are only about 350 mature leopards left in West Africa, according to the latest regional assessment by the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. Leopards (Panthera pardus) in West Africa are thought to be genetically isolated from those in Central Africa, with little or no interbreeding between populations. They’re found in 11 countries: Benin, […]
Benin puts solar power at the heart of its energy policy
- Benin’s government has reaffirmed its intention to make renewable energy the main source of the country’s power supply by 2030.
- Access to electricity in Benin remains both low and highly uneven: Around 42% of urban households are connected, with less than 13% in rural areas.
- With financial and technical support from a variety of sources, Benin previously built several solar power plants and installed dozens of mini-grids; solar power currently contributes around 15% of domestic production.
- Benin is dependent on imported power for 95% of its electricity needs, but is placing resilient renewable energy at the center of its strategy to increase and expand its domestic generating capacity.

Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil must halt Liberian palm oil company’s abuses (commentary)
- For more than a decade, communities in Liberia have struggled against palm oil company Golden Veroleum Liberia (GVL), which has razed more than 1,000 hectares (almost 2,500 acres) of rainforest, destroyed sacred sites, and violated their land rights, leading the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) to issue a stop-work order.
- Then, in June, the RSPO reversed its ruling, raising concerns over the fate of Liberia’s dense forests and communities, despite the long list of allegations.
- “There is of course another path. The RSPO can stand on its stated principles and maintain the stop-work order,” a new op-ed argues.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Linking biodiversity protection with community development in an era of crisis (commentary)
- Environmental discourse and momentum seem to be weakening lately, as urgent geopolitical and economic priorities push concrete action to the margins, overseas development aid and conservation finance shrinks, while conflicts, shifting power balances, and unsustainable development models in megadiverse countries continue to erode ecosystems.
- In response, the conservation sector is beginning to explore new approaches that link biodiversity protection with local development, and one of the most promising of these is the “socio-bioeconomy” concept.
- Social bioeconomies can create value from ecological stewardship, integrate conservation into daily livelihoods, and encourage new imaginaries of what prosperity can mean, a new op-ed argues: “They also remind us that biodiversity conservation is not only a technical challenge, but a profoundly political one — requiring fairness, equity, and strong civic action.”
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

A cacao rush drives ‘alarming’ deforestation in Liberia
- Satellite data and reports from the ground show how a rapid expansion of smallholder cacao farming in southeastern Liberia is causing “alarming” deforestation.
- Large numbers of migrant workers from Côte D’Ivoire have been invited into Liberia by community leaders looking set up cacao plantations.
- Liberia’s remote southeast is one of its most densely forested regions, and also one of its poorest.
- Cacao grown in these new plantations would likely run afoul of new EU regulations barring deforestation-linked commodities, which the bloc is considering delaying.

Burkina Faso’s women farmers reviving the land with fertilizer trees
- Land restoration in Burkina Faso’s Centre-Ouest and Kadiogo regions is women’s work.
- Here, women have made fertilizer trees their indispensable allies in reviving farmland.
- Thanks to these nitrogen-fixing and shade-providing trees, they’re bringing degraded soils back to life.
- In Cassou and Bazoulé communes in Centre-Ouest, local women are breathing new life into an ancestral technique that boosts productivity and enriches biodiversity.

In southeast Nigeria, pangolins hunted for meat, not scales, study finds
- African pangolins are heavily hunted to meet the international demand for scales as well as for their meat in the local bushmeat trade. But how much each contributes to the hunting of these beleaguered mammals in various parts of Nigeria, a trafficking hub, is unclear.
- For a recent study, researchers interviewed more than 800 hunters and meat vendors in southeast Nigeria, a poaching hotspot, and found that hunters almost always hunt pangolins opportunistically, mostly for their meat rather than their scales.
- Hunters ranked pangolin meat highly for its palatability, and told researchers they ate most of it themselves, or sold it. Because local demand for scales is limited, nearly 70% of the scales are simply discarded.
- Conservationists say understanding the local drivers of demand helps design targeted conservation strategies, such as providing alternative livelihoods and food security.

Fear & uncertainty grip Nigerian community after fatal elephant attack
- A 50-year-old farmer, Yaya Musa, popularly known as Kala, was attacked and killed by an elephant in the Itasin-Imobi community, in Nigeria’s Ogun state, in late July.
- Villagers say they live in constant fear of elephant attacks, with two previous incidents reported in recent years, including an assault on Badmus Kazeem, a chainsaw operator in 2024, who spent seven months in the hospital recovering from injuries.
- The Ogun state commissioner for forestry reportedly says the incident occurred in a designated wildlife area, but community members reject this claim, insisting their ancestral lands predate the elephant reserve and that their livelihoods depend on farming and fishing in the area.

EUDR implementation comes laden with potential unintended consequences
- The European Union’s regulation on deforestation-free products (EUDR) is set to enter into force at the end of 2025, after a one-year delay. Experts say this tool is needed to address deforestation within the bloc’s commodities supply chains, but experts say the EUDR, unless revised, may come with unintended consequences.
- A shift of deforestation-linked commodities from the EU to nonregulated markets (known as leakage) could undermine the EUDR, while smallholder farmers could be sidelined to more easily meet the regulation’s goals, worsening social problems, risking land use change and even causing harm to ecosystems beyond forests.
- Experts propose a range of measures to address these problems in advance of EUDR implementation, including direct forest protection, inclusion of other vulnerable ecosystems in the legislation and greater efforts by government and companies to help smallholders adapt to regulatory requirements.

‘Let’s understand the value of the forest’ says Liberia’s Silas Siakor
- Twenty-eight communities in southeastern Liberia are set to begin receiving “area-based payments” in exchange for preventing unsustainable logging and mining, curbing shifting agriculture and limiting the establishment of new settlements in forests they manage.
- A pilot project, designed by a Liberian NGO and backed by funding from the Irish government, will pay villagers to protect the forest over the next two years.
- Mongabay’s Ashoka Mukpo spoke to Goldman Prize-winner Silas Siakor about how the initiative responds to the immediate needs of this rural population.

Liberia has a new plan to protect its rainforests. Can it work?
- Half of West Africa’s remaining rainforests are in Liberia, but in 2024, it lost more than 38,000 hectares (94,000 acres) of humid primary forest, according to Global Forest Watch.
- That was the highest rate of deforestation recorded for Liberia, driven by trees being cleared for agriculture, mining and logging.
- A new pilot project being launched in Liberia’s remote southwest will make “area-based payments” to 28 communities in exchange for commitments to protect some of their customary forests.
- Designed by former Goldman Environmental Prize winner Silas Siakor, the project is an example of “non-market approaches” to carbon sequestration.

Liberian communities await justice at Salala rubber plantation after World Bank complaint
Five months after the World Bank’s private investment arm submitted its action plan to address community grievances against a rubber plantation it funds in Liberia, affected residents are still waiting for its implementation. The case goes back to a 2019 complaint filed by four Liberian NGOs with the internal watchdog of the International Finance Corporation […]
Ghana passes landmark legislation to protect artisanal fisheries
- Ghana has passed a new fisheries act which aims at strengthening the artisanal fishery sector, restoring fish stocks and tackling problems with illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.
- A major change is the expansion of the country’s inshore exclusion zone, which will double in size, expanding from 6 to 12 nautical miles (11 to 22 kilometers) from shore.
- The law has been welcomed by artisanal fishers who have been struggling with declining pelagic fish stocks due to destructive fishing practices within the IEZ.

Goliath versus Goliath (cartoon)
The largest insects in the world, Africa’s Goliath beetles, are up against a much bigger behemoth—the cocoa industry. Indiscriminate deforestation for cocoa in West Africa is wiping out their home range, as well as their populations.
Agroecological market gardening: Benin’s climate-resilient farming solution
- Young entrepreneurs from the Agro-Eco Cooperative are bringing fresh energy to market gardening in southern Benin.
- They have adopted environmentally friendly methods and techniques such as using fertilizer made from ash and animal manure, along with natural pesticides to protect biodiversity, while ensuring a healthy diet for local communities.
- They also face numerous challenges, including problems with irrigation, the lack of a dedicated market for agroecological produce and the limited effectiveness of organic pest control products.

New list of primates in peril aims to focus attention and inspire action
- A new list of the 25 most threatened primates has been published by the International Primatological Society, which held its 30th congress in Madagascar in July.
- More than 40% of primate species are classed as endangered or worse, and the biannual listing of the most threatened species aims to draw attention to species at particularly high risk, and inspire action to protect them.
- The 2025 list includes species from Asia, Africa and the Neotropics.
- Some species are absent from the latest list thanks to an improved outlook, but others have been displaced only because of the deteriorating situation for others.

Former poachers guard Cabo Verde’s endangered sea turtles
- Conservation organizations are employing Cabo Verdeans, who formerly hunted endangered and threatened sea turtles, as rangers who now monitor and patrol beaches.
- From 2007-24, illegal catches of female turtles on one island plummeted from 1,253 to a mere 20, while nesting sites of vulnerable loggerhead turtles increased sevenfold, according to data by a conservation NGO.
- Locals traditionally consume turtle parts, use them in traditional medicine and now sell them in black markets; however, conservation activities, legislation and tourism have led to a reduction in turtle harvesting, researchers say.
- Conservationists say threats persist for sea turtles from at-sea captures, industrial fishing and plastic pollution, and that stricter laws and increased participation of the fisher community in conservation activities are needed.

Global maps reveal where mycorrhizal fungi thrive — and where they’re unprotected
- Scientists made the first detailed global maps of mycorrhizal fungal networks by analyzing DNA from 25,000 soil samples worldwide, showing where these fungi that partner with most plants are most diverse.
- Less than 10% of the areas with the highest fungal diversity are currently protected, leaving important underground ecosystems at risk from farming and development.
- Major hotspots include Ethiopia’s Simien Mountain foothills, Brazil’s Cerrado savanna, West African rainforests and Tasmania’s forests, with different types of fungi thriving in tropical versus temperate regions.
- A new Underground Atlas tool allows users to explore fungal diversity patterns anywhere on Earth, revealing biodiversity hotspots that traditional conservation approaches have overlooked.

A forest garden project attempts to expand into the Sahel
- A project in the Sahel and East Africa claims to fight both soil erosion and poverty through regenerative agroforestry.
- U.S.-based NGO Trees for the Future (TREES) trains farmers in what it calls the forest garden approach, an ancient model to plant diverse species next to each other.
- The approach is one of seven selected by the U.N. as a world restoration flagship program and aims to scale up massively to plant a billion trees by 2030.
- However, some experts say the potential for scaling up is limited, especially in the semiarid Sahel region, given the need for easily accessible sources of water.

Illegal fishing and its consequences: the human toll of migration in Senegal
- In 2024, more than 2,000 people are believed to have died at sea while attempting to reach Spain’s Canary Islands from Senegal and the Gambia.
- According to the NGO Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), people from Senegalese fishing communities are tempted to migrate to Europe due to declining fish stocks, owing in part to illegal fishing by European and Asian fleets.
- Illegal fishing, along with trawler fishing, are among the main drivers of this depletion of marine resources, depriving small-scale fishers in Senegal of a livelihood.
- Advocacy groups Oceana and ClientEarth have taken the Spanish government to court for failing to investigate — and, where appropriate, sanction — Spanish vessels that go dark by failing to transmit their location, and for not effectively monitoring the fishing operations of Spanish companies in West Africa.

Nigeria’s proposed ban on solar panel imports raises concerns
Nigeria recently proposed a ban on importing solar panels to boost local manufacturing, but some climate and renewable energy experts worry this move may impede the country’s transition to cleaner energy sources. In announcing the proposed ban on March 26, Nigeria’s Minister of Science and Technology Uche Nnaji said the country has sufficient capacity to […]
Ghana to expand artisanal fishing zone amid trawler violations
Ghana has announced plans to expand the area in which small-scale fishers can operate, in response to persistent violations by industrial trawlers encroaching into this zone. The country’s inshore exclusion zone, or IEZ, will now extend 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) from shore, up from 6 nmi (11 km) currently. Emelia Arthur, Ghana’s newly appointed […]
First elephant sighting in 6 years sparks hope for species’ return to a Senegal park
- A camera trap has captured video of an elephant for the first time in six years in Senegal’s Niokolo-Koba National Park, reviving hopes that the species may still survive in the park after their near disappearance due to poaching and habitat loss.
- Ousmane, a hybrid of African forest and savanna elephants, is the first confirmed sighting since 2019, sparking discussions about reintroducing a small herd to reestablish a breeding population.
- Ongoing conservation efforts, including more than $6 million in investment and strengthened antipoaching patrols, have helped wildlife populations in Niokolo-Koba recover, leading to its removal from UNESCO’s World Heritage in Danger List in 2024.

Pandemic-era slump in ivory and pangolin scale trafficking persists, report finds
- A recent report from the Wildlife Justice Commission analyzed trends in ivory and pangolin scales trafficking from Africa over the past decade using seizure data and found that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted the illegal trade, with fewer significant seizures reported post-pandemic.
- The report attributes this dip to pandemic-induced lockdowns, increased law enforcement and intelligence gathering, successful prosecutions, and declines in the prices of ivory and pangolin scales.
- While Nigeria has been a major export hub for both commodities, the report finds that trafficking hotspots are shifting to other countries such as Angola and Mozambique, which have historically been hubs of the rhino horn trade.
- The report recommends that African nations strengthen law enforcement and intelligence gathering, dismantle crime networks by targeting those at the top tiers of these networks, and foster better cooperation between countries and other organizations to address trafficking.

After controversy, Plant-for-the-Planet focuses on the trees
- Plant-for-the-Planet, a global forest restoration and youth empowerment initiative, oversees reforestation projects in Mexico, Spain and Ghana.
- The organization was founded by Felix Finkbeiner at just 9 years old, when his school tree-planting project happened to make the local news in Germany. Now 27, he continues to help run Plant-for-the-Planet as it juggles rapid growth with the slow, painstaking work of planting trees.
- In recent years, the organization has been plagued by controversy, with news investigations exposing exaggerated planting numbers, poor record-keeping, and plans to invest in controversial real estate development.
- Now Plant-for-the-Planet is focusing on data collection and longer-term restoration strategies, hoping to leave its mistakes in the past.

How trafficking & misconceptions threaten Nigeria’s wildlife: Q&A with Dr. Mark Ofua
- Veterinarian and wildlife conservationist Dr. Mark Ofua discusses his journey in Nigeria, highlighting efforts to protect species and combat wildlife trafficking.
- He notes societal misconceptions and lack of education as some of the major challenges in addressing wildlife conservation issues among the general public in Nigeria.
- The conservationist shares his experiences on rescue missions, including a particularly challenging encounter with sea turtle traffickers who had him fearing for his life.
- Ofua, who hosts a popular children’s TV show about animals, emphasizes the importance of educating children about wildlife conservation and the role of media in promoting awareness about local wildlife.

Hundreds die after flash floods tear through Nigerian market town
At least 200 people have been confirmed dead and 500 more remain missing after flash floods devastated a Nigerian market town, media reported. Torrential rain started early on May 29, and within just a few hours caused intense flooding in the town of Mokwa, Niger state, a major trading hub for northern farmers selling beans, […]
Peril and persistence define the path of Africa’s conservationists
- Local conservationists across Africa face threats, isolation and underfunding, as illustrated by Nigerian conservationist Itakwu Innocent, who survived an assassination attempt and has endured years of violence and ostracism for protecting wildlife and opposing poaching in his community.
- Women and young scientists in particular face systemic barriers in conservation, including gender bias and limited access to funding and recognition, despite taking leadership roles and driving grassroots initiatives in places like Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria.
- Funding disparities and broken promises by international NGOs have undermined trust in conservation efforts, making it harder for local scientists like Owan Kenneth to gain community support without financial incentives.
- Despite these challenges, recognition and success stories are emerging, with initiatives like fellowships and community-led reforms helping figures such as Adekambi Cole, Bashiru Koroma and Asuquo Nsa Ani make tangible conservation gains and inspire others.

Guinea-Bissau’s grassroots efforts offer a blueprint for global mangrove restoration (commentary)
- Guinea-Bissau’s mangroves have declined by nearly a third over the past 80 years, but the country still has the largest mangrove area as a proportion of its total area in the world.
- A grassroots revolution is underway, spearheaded by national organizations, international partners and local communities to restore the country’s mangrove landscapes.
- Called Ecological Mangrove Restoration, this method focuses on optimizing conditions for the mangroves to restore naturally, as well as collaborating with communities to ensure sustainability and resilience by fostering ownership of the project while leveraging local knowledge and resources.
- This post is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily of Mongabay.

Urban forests in Niger’s schoolyards serve climate resilience and education
- Trees growing school yards in Niger’s two largest cities are helping to cool classrooms and illustrate the value of urban forests.
- A study of green spaces across 60 schools in Niamey and Maradi two cities found that trees in schools help mitigate extreme heat, a source of food and income, and enhance learning.
- School yards represent a form of protected area within cities, and the study’s author encourages municipal and educational authorities to integrate urban forestry into planning for school infrastructure.

Deforestation in REDD-protected Congo rainforests is ‘beyond words’
The Republic of Congo had been protecting about half of its dense rainforests via the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) framework. In exchange, the country is supposed to receive payments from the World Bank. But Mongabay Africa staff writer Elodie Toto’s recent investigation revealed the nation has also granted nearly 80 gold […]
In Côte d’Ivoire a changing climate hits farmers and markets alike
- Towns across Côte d’Ivoire are facing shortages of staple foods like plantain and tomatoes, due to erratic weather.
- Prolonged drought and heavy rains have affected growers in towns like Soubré, who are struggling to maintain sufficient production to supply local markets.
- An expert says adapting to the new climate reality is key, and proposes training farmers in new agricultural techniques and improving natural resource management.

Dredging and pollution threaten fishing in the Niger River
- Some fishers in Bamako, Mali’s capital, are raising concerns about dredging of the Niger River in search of gold.
- They say the combination of dredging and increasing plastic pollution is causing fish stocks to decline.
- Damage to the river’s ecosystems is taking a toll on their livelihoods, with some forced to give up fishing for the more lucrative, but environmentally destructive, activity of river sand mining.

In Cameroon’s forgotten forests, gorillas and chimps hang on
- Many forest reserves in southern Cameroon, despite being highly degraded and fragmented, harbor significant biodiversity.
- A recent study using camera traps in two such forest reserves captured the first evidence of great apes — a gorilla and several chimpanzees — foraging in and navigating the mosaic of fragmented landscapes.
- Some of the videos show apes and humans using the same parts of the forests at different times, highlighting the risk of human-ape conflicts that could impact the already threatened great apes.
- Conservationists say the presence of great apes outside protected areas indicates the need to protect these areas, and that further research is needed to understand how great apes use fragmented landscapes close to human communities.

Hybrid mapping method key to EUDR cocoa compliance, study finds
A coalition of organizations has assessed how locally produced maps stack up against global open-access data sets to evaluate deforestation in the context of cocoa production. The assessment will be useful for cocoa producers as they work toward compliance with the EU anti-deforestation regulation (EUDR), set to take effect at the end of the year, […]
Warming seas and illegal trawlers threaten West Africa’s fishing future, study warns
A new paper paints a grim picture for the future of fishing communities in the Gulf of Guinea along coastal West Africa. Faced with increasing ocean warming and declining fish stocks, fishing communities in Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria struggle to survive. The paper’s authors advocate for income diversification among fishing communities as a critical […]

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