Ranger killed by poachers for protecting elephants in Congo

Poachers killed the ranger Agoyo Mbikoyo, committed to monitoring elephants in the Congolese park.

The elephants of the Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have been suffering numerous attacks by poachers, and now they are a little bit less protected. On 25 April 2015 Agoyo Mbikoyo was killed. He was one of the rangers committed to safeguarding wild animals, and to fighting against poachers.

 

Agoyo Mbikoyo

 

Agoyo was close to his patrol unit’s campsite when he was shot by a group of armed poachers, according to the organisation African Parks Network (APN). Agoyo and his unit were monitoring herds of elephants in the southern section of the park.

 

Garamba National Park, one of the most ancient African parks, is constantly targeted by elephant poaching. In 2015 alone over 70 elephants were killed, whilst in 2014 at least 86 elephants died, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).

 

elefanti

 

The attacks can be attributed to the Lord’s Resistance Army, a terroristic-religious organisation founded in Uganda that uses money deriving from the ivory sale to finance its criminal operations.

 

“The ranger Agoyo Mbikoyo will be sorely missed by his fellow rangers for his commitment to conservation and his role in our fight against poaching. He leaves his wife without her husband and his children without their father and we extend our sincere condolences to them over their loss,” said Erik Mararv, Garamba’s park manager. African Parks, which currently runs the embattled protected area along with the the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN), noted that Mbikyo’s wife and children will be provided for under the organization’s accident policy.

 

ranger anti-bracconaggio

 

Garamba National Park covers nearly 5,000 square kilometres, and is home to less than 2,000 elephants currently: the park’s population registered a 90% decline over the last 50 years.

Translated by

Siamo anche su WhatsApp. Segui il canale ufficiale LifeGate per restare aggiornata, aggiornato sulle ultime notizie e sulle nostre attività.

Licenza Creative Commons
Quest'opera è distribuita con Licenza Creative Commons Attribuzione - Non commerciale - Non opere derivate 4.0 Internazionale.

Related articles
Three rangers have been killed for protecting elephants in the Congo

Garamba National Park, Democratic Republic of the Congo, is one of the most important and ancient natural parks in Equatorial Africa. It is home to a huge variety of wildlife including elephants, lions, giraffes, hippos and white rhinos. More precisely, it is home to what’s left of these animals’ ancient populations, after decades of relentless poaching.

Bill Gates: “Who invests in renewables is going to make a lot of money”

He has already invested 1 billion dollars in tens of projects and innovative realities for the development of renewables all over the world. Maybe not all investments had the success and outcomes desired, but they have certainly been money well spent, since they set a guideline within the energy industry. With this in mind, the world’s richest man,

Oslo to create a bee highway

People are increasingly committing themselves to protect one of the Planet’s most important pollinators: bees. And in Norway they are creating a green corridor exactly for them.

Environmental migrants: the storm ahead

100,000 lives were lost in the Sahel region of Africa between 1972 and 1984 due to a long lasting drought and the famine it caused. A recent scientific study shows that global warming has more recently increased rainfall in the area, temporarily relieving it from drought. This has led many, such as Forbes contributor James