The countries of Nigeria and Cameroon are intending to launch a global heritage location for the preservation of endangered species such as gorillas, chimpanzees, lions, and elephants domestic to both countries.
The Director, of Cross River Landscape for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Dr. Inaoyom Imong. announced this on Monday, March 27, 2023, in Calabar, Cross River State, at a seminar on Watershed Protection for Safe Sustainable Water Supply.
The seminar, financed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), seeks to enlighten Nigerians on the necessity to guard their wildlife.
According to Imong, occasional species native to both countries are very few in number in the whole of Africa, hence the necessity to safeguard them through the building of the site.
He said a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) would soon be marked by the Presidents of the countries, adding that the establishment would aid both nations to conduct mutual preservation objectives.
“The World Heritage Site will intensify transboundary steps between Nigeria and Cameroon which will make preservation more practical and lessen expenses.
“When the MoU is signed by the two presidents very soon, it will bring about many more advantages, including common protection and standard transboundary seminars between Nigeria and Cameroon,” he said.
Imong pleaded for the building up and imposition of laws against the onslaught of wildlife and continued infiltration into shielded forests.
He also called for help in the prosecution of offenders as well as the design of a code of behavior for forest keepers.
He further said that WCS just had a seminar for officers of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency, (NESREA) and Nigeria Customs Service in Calabar in that respect.
“The seminar became essential to keep appropriate agencies updated with the global proportions which wildlife business has presumed, including methods to embark on them.
“We are also supplying living aid for local communities in the forest regions to check overall poverty, and also deter them from intruding guarded sites for food,” he said.
