Carried out in Senegal, the programme is based on the conservation and observation of chimpanzees and the strengthening of the circuit of locally owned accommodations.

Carried out in Senegal, the programme is based on the conservation and observation of chimpanzees and the strengthening of the circuit of locally owned accommodations.

Framed in a five-year joint program with the United States Agency for International Development (USAid) and the Direction des Eaux et Forêts (DEF) of the government of Senegal, this project entitled “Sustainable ecotourism development in the Kedougou region, based on the conservation and observation of chimpanzees, and the strengthening of the circuit of locally owned accommodations. Phase I” aims to redirect two major problems, based on the observation of the great apes closest to Western ecotourism markets:

• The critical situation of the Pan troglodytes verus, with extraordinary characteristics of cultural adaptation to the environment, in imminent danger of extinction due to the fragmentation of its habitat and competition with humans.
• The demand for sustainable economic alternatives by local communities in the area, especially young people, deprived of other opportunities.

The habituation of wild chimpanzees is not an easy or quick process, which is why the project is designed to keep a double front open, and not miss opportunities during the first phases:

1. On the one hand, to accompany and accelerate the adaptation and implementation of the regulatory framework and the training of communities to favor the appropriation of chimpanzee conservation.
2. On the other hand, to promote natural and cultural tourism in the region, adapted to the evolution of the habituation of chimpanzee groups, starting with the ‘hiding places’ until they are followed on foot by tourists, without necessarily forcing the dynamics of the habituation process.