A tumultuous path

Created in 2009 by the ecoguide Ghislain Ngonga Ndjibadi, Association des éco-guides Mikongo'Vision mainly organises touristic excursions in Lope National Park and particularly to Mikongo campsite.

The story of MIKONGO'VISION and its ecoguides.

- 1999: the European Union funds the building of a site immersed in the gabonese forest whose objective is to create important revenues issuing from ecotourism while reducing at maximum environmental human impacts. Revenues will be destined both to the National Park management and to the development of local communities. Young gabonese people are recruited to work in the forest site where will be conducted an ecological monitoring and a gorilla habituation programme. The Conservation Centre of Mikongo was born!

- 2005: the EU project ends. Fully managing Mikongo Site, ZSL (Zoological Society of London) carries on scientific researches on gorillas as well as activities with local villages.

- August 5th, 2009: creation of MIKONGO'VISION (association of Mikongo ecoguides). Ghislain convinces most of Mikongo ecoguides and trackers to form an association in order to continue touristic activities when ZSL will be leaving next year. The adventure begins.

- March 2010: ZSL leaves Mikongo five years after initiating its ecotouristic project. MIKONGO'VISION ecoguides continue to come in the forest despite great logistic difficulties.

- December 2012: the most wanted legalisation act of Association MIKONGO'VISION by Ministère de l'Intérieur has finally arrived! Unfortunately, after three difficult years, many members left the Association for more stable jobs. MIKONGO'VISION is legalised but must also rebuild itself with deeply motivated people. The real struggle begins.

- October 2013: our website is finally on the net! Flyers have also been printed to reinforce our "advertisement campaign". We hope that this website will allow us to be more visible in the world and to attract many people wishing to discover the wild forests of Gabon.

- January to September 2014: ANPN (National Parks Agency) and WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) organise a training session which will create a real status for ecoguides in Gabon. Ghislain and 14 other people participate.

- September / October 2014: Association MIKONGO'VISION organises two Gabon 22-day tours, practically a world premiere! Some Belgian and Dutch adventurers tried their luck by discovering a rare insight of natural and cultural Gabon.

Donation request.

We make a call to any organization or firm able to finance, fully or partially, our project (training of new ecoguides and gorilla habituation).

MIKONGO'VISION team.