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Set amongst the waters of the Lopori and Maringa Rivers, the Congo Heartland boasts the second-largest contiguous moist tropical forest in the world. The Heartland is home to a wealth of African wildlife, including the endangered bonobo, forest elephants, diverse avifauna, and more than 400 fish species. Now recovering from years of civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the people of this Heartland are striving to rebuild their livelihoods, their infrastructure, and their environment.

Conserving Wildlife

Preserving biological diversity and endangered species bonobo research and mammal monitoring.

AWF solutions in Congo:

Protecting Land

Creating a National Reserve to keep tropical forest ecosystem.

AWF solutions in Congo:

Empowering People

Developing sustainable livelihood strategies for a population struggling with poverty.

AWF solutions in Congo:

Engaging You!

See how you can make a difference for the wildlife and people of the Congo. Click on these Solutions to become involved!

AWF solutions in Congo:

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Headlines and Highlights

Apr 06, 2009 | Award-Winning MILKING THE RHINO, Featuring AWF’s D...

Feb 17, 2009 | Something to Blog About: AWF Launches New Blogs on L...

Oct 17, 2008 | Bonobos -- Both Lovers and Hunters?

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Because the Heartlands cover truly vast tracts of public and private land, cooperation by many public and private parties is required for success. Here are some of AWF's partners in the Congo Heartland:

  • Abraham Foundation
  • Center for the Integral Development of Lomako (CEDILO)
  • Centre de Development Agro-pastoral de Djolu (CDAP)
  • Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
  • DRC Ministry of Agriculture
  • DRC Ministry of Environment
  • NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
  • Observatoire Satelitaire des Forêts d'Afrique Centrale (OSFAC)
  • US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)
  • World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)
More partners >
Resources and Documents

Philip Muruthi. African Heartlands: A Science-Based and Pragmatic Approach to Landscape Level Conservation in Africa. Technical Papers, 2005.

J.J.R. Grimsdell. Ecological Monitoring. Technical Papers, 1978.

Philip Muruthi. Human Wildlife Conflict: Lessons Learned From AWF's African Heartlands. Technical Papers, 2005.

David Western and J.R.R. Grimsdell. Measuring the Distribution of Animals in Relation to the Environment. Technical Papers, 1979.

Philip Muruthi. The Process of Preparing a General Management Plan for a Protected Area. Technical Papers, 2006.

First Boat Up the Lomako River in the Congo

Short clip of the first boat up the Lomako River in the Congo. Congolese celebrate and dance on a boat carrying materials for the construction of AWF's bonobo research and conservation center in Lomako-Yokokala Faunal Reserve in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This is the first boat up the Lomako River in who knows how long -- 20-30 years!


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Quick Facts

Area: 7.7 million hectares (29,730 square miles) - slightly smaller than the state of South Carolina

Key landmarks: Globally important tropical forest; expansive river systems; unique wildlife species.

Maps: this region | Africa

Staff in this Heartland

Valentin Omasombo Wotoko
Protected Area Manager
Congo Heartland


Jef Dupain
Congo Heartland Director
Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo


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Congo Wildlife

Bonobo

The bonobo is only found in the country of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between the Congo River, the Lomami River, the Kasai/Sankuru Rivers, and the Lake Tumba/Lac Ndombe region. Bonobo range is presently calculated at no more than 350,000 square kilometers. They spend much of their time in the tall, dense tropical forest canopy, gracefully maneuvering though the trees searching for food. This area is fragmented, and it seems as if bonobo can survive in close proximity to human communities that are willing to co-habitate with this peaceful ape. Recent surveys, however, show that many areas that were known to have lots of bonobo 20 years ago now have none. This region of DRC has been politically unstable for the past 10 years, and this has attributed to bonobo decline.

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