Development of protected area law enforcement, management and monitoring systems, protocols and capacity of selected sites
Result 2 allows the MIKES project to respond to major current and emerging hotspots for illegal killing of elephants and other target species. In selected priority sites, MIKES provides technical and operational support for the strengthening of law enforcement capacity and systems of the concerned protected area agencies, through the provision of law enforcement-oriented training, technical support for the design of appropriate law enforcement patrol systems, and key operational support where required. The Result also supports efforts to strengthen the involvement of local communities in the law enforcement effort, alongside other local law enforcement agencies and the judiciary. Eight focal sites have been selected on the basis of their importance for the protection of key populations of elephants and other CITES-listed flagship species, the scale and nature of the threats to these species, and the likelihood of mitigating these threats through targeted support for the protected area’s law enforcement and management systems.
The key activities identified to deliver this result are as follows:
Activity 2.1 Develop and support the establishment of systems for improving the relevance of RBM to adaptive protected area management, including planning RBM operations and responding to information generated
Activity 2.2 Develop or revise protected area management plans for selected target sites as a basis for planning and implementing effective law enforcement and adaptive management systems and improving accountability
Activity 2.3 Provide technical, operational and material support for the strengthening of existing law enforcement and adaptive management systems and capacity at target sites, incorporating lessons learnt and best practice solutions
Activity 2.4 Develop protected area law enforcement capacity to respond to major current and emerging target species poaching crises at hotspots for illegal killing within priority protected areas
Activity 2.5 Develop and support initiatives designed to strengthen collaboration between neighbouring local communities, local authorities and protected area management in law enforcement initiatives in target protected areas
Activity 2.6 Develop mechanisms for sharing of intelligence information between target sites concerning illegal killing of elephants and other flagship species
Implementation
A total of eight focal sites have been selected for the implementation of MIKES Result 2 through a rigorous selection process conducted in consultation with the African elephant range States and the MIKE ETIS Subgroup. The sites selected are the following:
Central Africa
- Boumba Bek National Park (Cameroon)
- Dzanga Sangha Complex of Protected Areas (Central African Republic)
- Okapi Faunal Reserve (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
Eastern Africa
- Katavi National Park and Rukwa Game Reserve (United Republic of Tanzania)
- Queen Elizabeth Conservation Area (Uganda)
Southern Africa
West Africa
MIKES is an Initiative of the ACP Secretarat, funded by the European Union under the 10th EDF