Bateke Binational Landscape
The WCS-Congo Batéké Plateaux Project is part of a larger landscape which stretches across the Téké plateaux regions of Gabon and Congo, spanning the the province of Haut Ogooué in Gabon and the Department of the Plateaux in Congo. This landscape is dominated by an ancient sand dune system-the Kalahari geological formation. The land is covered by large open expanses of grass interspersed with wooded savannas and dense gallery forest hugging river valleys.
Transboundary poaching is a problem, and steps have been taken to work with local authorities on both sides of the border to halt the practice. Technical and administrative coordination began at the landscape level through a meeting between Gabon and ROC partners in Brazzaville in 2004. A follow-up technical meeting was held in February 2005, and focused on developing strategies to address transborder poaching. In ROC, socioeconomic work and meetings with the local administrations have permitted communication and information sharing with landscape stakeholders.