Femmes Pro-Forêts: building climate resilience in Guinea's Moyen-Bafing National Park
Femmes Pro-Forêts (2023-2027) is an international development project run by UPA Développement international (UPA DI), in partnership with the Canada Research Chair in Ecological Ecology at the Université du Québec en Outaouais, and funded by Global Affairs Canada. From an institutional point of view, the FproF project has developed several alliances, the main one being with the Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD) and its protected area management body, the Guinean Office of National Parks and Wildlife Reserves (OGPNRF).
The aim? To strengthen the climate resilience of 5,000 vulnerable women and young women living in and around the Moyen-Bafing National Park (PNMB), by promoting the adoption of nature-based solutions.
To achieve this, we are focusing on 3 main areas:
Increased adoption of nature-based solutions supporting forest biodiversity;
Sustainable improvement of economic opportunities for women and young women based on nature-based solutions;
Increased inclusive and equitable governance of forest biodiversity.
Moyen-Bafing National Park: an ecological jewel under threat
Photo credit: UPA DI
Officially created in 2021, the PNMB is located in the Labé region of northern Guinea.
It is distinguished by :
Its exceptional population of West African chimpanzees, one of the largest in the region.
Its strategic role in supplying water to West Africa, particularly to the Senegal River basin.
But this park is weakened by :
The effects of climate change: prolonged droughts, lower river flows, loss of soil fertility.
Traditional slash-and-burn farming in the 405 villages in the park, which leads to deforestation.
In this context, Habitat has been tasked with identifying areas of high importance for the conservation of forest biodiversity and guiding reforestation by applying the concepts of resilience in the face of climate change.
Where to protect and restore?
2. Areas of high biodiversity importance
Observation data on emblematic species (chimpanzees, buffalo, leopards, baboons, warthogs, etc.) were cross-referenced with ecosystem types to identify ecological corridors and biodiversity hotspots:
1. Ecosystem mapping
Using satellite images, the park's ecosystems were classified:
📌 Next step (2025-2026) : Habitat will evaluate the services provided by these environments.
Groundwater recharge (to combat drought)
Protection against erosion (support for agriculture and improvement of water quality)
Pollination (agricultural production and biodiversity)
The aim is to identify priority areas for the implementation of nature-based solutions best suited to local realities.
What to plant A scientific approach that integrates local knowledge
Consultations with experts in Guinea made it possible to document these functional traits and add socio-ecological criteria:
Fruit compestibility
Interest in chimpanzees
Disease resistance
Fruiting period
Cultural or economic importance for communities
Instead of classifying trees solely by species, Habitat has grouped them according to their functional characteristics:
Wood density
Seed size
Leaf area
Nitrogen content
Resistant to drought, fire, shade, etc.
This approach makes it possible to select species that are resilient in the face of future climatic conditions and to promote a high level of functional diversity.
Photo credit: UPA DI
How are these results used in the field?
The results were used to target priority areas for reforestation, in collaboration with communities.
Functional diversity data are used to :
Carrying out forest inventories
Assessing the ecological resilience of local forests
Increasing functional diversity during planting
3. Several community nurseries have been set up with the most relevant species to initiate participatory planting with local communities.
A commitment to continue
By placing women and local communities at the heart of the protection of the Moyen-Bafing National Park, this project demonstrates that it is possible to reconcile economic development, climate resilience and biodiversity conservation. Habitat will continue this work in the next stages, strengthening local capacities and deploying sustainable solutions.
Would you like to find out more or take part in our initiatives?
