How the Congo Conflict Affects Gorilla Trekking in Virunga
The continued conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with its effects in the eastern region, has left an indelible mark on Virunga National Park, one of the best-known wildlife destinations in Africa. Virunga is a critical conservation area and home to a large population of endangered mountain gorillas, visited each year by thousands of people for gorilla trekking safaris. But the escalating violence including a civil war between government forces and rebel groups, such as the M23 (March 23) has thrown up a tangle of difficulties both for the conservation sector and for the tourism industry the following are the ways how the Congo conflict affects Gorilla Trekking in Virunga.
Impact on Visitor Safety
A growing concern about the safety of tourists has been one of the most immediate effects of the Congo conflict on gorilla trekking. Near Goma in North Kivu province, Virunga National Park is frequently directly affected by the violence in the region. However armed clashes between rebel groups and the Congolese military have made the park risky territory for tourists visiting the area.
These security threats have sometimes prevented the park from suspending or reducing trekking activities within some areas. Visitors can go to Virunga, but authorities, tourism operators, and even tourists can’t always guarantee a safe atmosphere as the conflict is unpredictable, not to mention that the conflict is ongoing. International governments have put in travel advisories against visiting the region with the end result of forcing tourists who would want to go for gorilla trekking expeditions in the park there.
Disruption of Access to the Park
It also disrupts infrastructure and the accessibility to Virunga National Park. Fighting and military operations often damage or make roads to the park, especially from Goma, dangerous. It’s beginning to get more and more difficult to get to the park’s trekking locations, which in turn discourages visitation.
The conflict also affects tourism infrastructure like hotels, transport services, and the local businesses that depend on gorilla trekking. Security in Goma and other surrounding towns has sometimes forced hotels and accommodations in Goma and surrounding towns to close temporarily or to operate under limited capacity. This then further limits visitor options and further complicates the planning of a trekking Safari to Virunga which is already difficult.
Threats to the Mountain Gorillas
The conflict is causing the mountain gorillas of Virunga National Park, one of the world’s most endangered species, to become more vulnerable each year. What makes this violence so dangerous is it is not only park rangers and staff on the frontlines of conservation who are the gorillas’ primary protectors but the gorillas themselves. Park boundaries are encroached upon by armed groups that have engaged in illegal activities, including poaching, logging, and resource extraction. The activities disrupt the gorillas’ habitat and put them at greater risk.
There is also the presence of armed groups in or close to the park, which will only serve to exacerbate wildlife poaching, which is already a huge problem in the region. Conflict stress, including noise from military activity, and human presence in formerly remote areas, can also disrupt gorilla behavior, and displace or disrupt feeding and breeding activities.
Ranger Safety and Conservation Efforts
Without park rangers, Virunga and its wildlife would be lost. But their work has been made more dangerous by this ongoing conflict. Attacks, kidnappings, and even deaths have been the fate of rangers trying to protect the park in the past. Park management has been forced to reroute its operations so that the rangers are safe, meaning they’ve scaled back anti-poaching patrols in some areas or at least temporarily halted some conservation efforts elsewhere in the park.
Because of these security challenges, conservation in Virunga has been substantially derailed. The Virunga Foundation and its stakeholders continue to work hard to safeguard the park’s biodiversity, but there are limited resources with which to do it given the instability in the area. Sometimes rangers are not just reassigned to safer zones inside the park, but the reduction in protection leads to fewer safer zones left behind, putting other ecosystems at risk.
Economic Impact on Local Communities
The economic ripple of that decline has affected local communities whose revenue is generated by the park through gorilla trekking tourism. Tourism is also the game that provides many families with jobs directly linked to tourism guiding, hospitality, and transportation. The reduction in visitors as a result of the conflict means that local businesses rely on less income and that puts people living around or near Virunga through economic hardship.
Funding conservation programs is also important, from salaries to ranger operations to anti-poaching programs; all of which are funded by the park’s tourism revenue. However, according to experts, the park struggles to handle ever-dwindling funds and the conflict’s escalating financial impacts.
Long-Term Consequences for Gorilla Trekking
However, the far-reaching impact of this conflict on how Virunga gorilla trekking operates is uncertain. If violence continues or intensifies, the park is unlikely to attract international tourists and the activities of gorilla trekking are likely to remain limited. If the gorillas’ habitat and the park’s security are threatened, years of work on the region’s tourism industry could be undermined.
But there’s reason for optimism in the future. With peace and stability slowly returning to the area, it might be that gorilla trekking in Virunga National Park will return. International support will be essential to ensure that the mountain gorillas survive and that gorilla trekking remains viable in the DRC in the future it is vital that it continues and is developed on a sustainable model.
