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The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a country that is very
concerned with environmental and conservation issues. God
has blessed us with a huge biodiversity; we are the first African
country in terms of biodiversity, we are one of the five large
countries in terms of biodiversity. We have mountain gorillas
as well as lowland gorillas – in the East and the West of the
country – which is extraordinary for such a large country. The
DRC is proud to have three out of the four species of great ape
and together, we want to be able to preserve this wealth, to save
this blessing which makes this country so diverse, so rich in eco-
systems of all kinds; mountains, lowlands, water sources. The
Congo represents half of Africa’s water sources. It is the World’s
second lung and everything that places value in this richness is
of greatest interest to us.
Five weeks ago, I took five ambassadors from Europe to visit the
gorillas in Kahusi-Biega. It was marvellous to see this rare spe-
cies, these animals so close to us. They have a colossal strength
and presence but at the same time demonstrate this need to share
this richness, this forest with us. It was fascinating. Every time
I see gorillas I see the power concentrated within them but also
their fragility in relation to the environment. In the East of the
country we have a few problems because we are still in the process
of pacification. We still have pockets of insecurity and we are
therefore confronted with the issue of having to save both peace
and the gorillas, having to save our natural wealth which is our
most prized possession. This heavy responsibility is mine, but
also that of the highest level of the state – the head of state is
very concerned by these problems, as well as my entire team –
the ICCN, the entire administration who want this patrimony,
which is nowadays not just a Congolese patrimony but a global
one, to be preserved, to be saved, to be enriched. This is our chal-
lenge; this is the challenge of the DRC and of those responsible
for it today and in the future. How do we ensure that mankind’s
progress goes hand-in-hand with the conservation of nature,
with the preservation of what is so intimately linked to the pro-
cesses of life? That is the challenge we face.
I can tell you that today our action is focused on the extremely
important issue of climate change. Forests are linked to cli-
mate change and without gorillas and the other species, there
are no forests. These species cannot survive without forests and
so everything is interlinked and links back to the future of hu-
mans as well. There is no future for humans without forests,
without water, without these great apes, without all the things
that make up the grandeur and uniqueness of our lives. Hu-
man life is also linked to the lives of great apes and the lives of
the other species we have in this country. Therefore, the ques-
tions of climate change, forests, water – without water there
are no forests, especially tropical ones like ours – all become
one and we have the historical obligation today to defend them
for humankind.
José Endundo Bononge
Minister of Environment, Nature Conservation
and Tourism, DRC
INTERVIEW
“
Our action is focused on the
issue of climate change
”