CAR: Consultant for the Characterization of the Aquatic Ecosystems of 4 Reference Sites in the Chinko Conservation Area and its Periphery

Jan 10, 2021 | African Parks
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African Parks is a non-governmental organization focused on conservation, established in 2000 and headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Context and Rationale

The Chinko Conservation Area

Chinko is a protected area located in the east of the Central African Republic. Initially made up of four hunting areas during the initial hunting project started gradually in 2006, Chinko as a Conservation Area (ACC), has been included in the portfolio of the NGO African Parks since 2014. African Parks is a non-profit organization profit-making organization that accepts full responsibility for the management of protected areas in long-term partnerships with governments and local communities. It applies the principles of business management and combines the income from the valuation of parks and those of funders and donors, in order to achieve financial self-sufficiency for each site in the long term. African Parks aims for ecological, social,

In the East of the Central African Republic, the Chinko team operates in a difficult environment where political instability and the conflict triggered in 2012 led to insecurity in rural areas which continues to this day. However, thanks to the support of financial partners and in particular institutional donors (European Union and USAID), anti-poaching activities as well as raising awareness among breeders and neighboring communities have made it possible to preserve a significant part of the land. area protected from the uncontrolled entry of herds of cattle, and significantly reduce poaching activities. In addition, activities for the benefit of communities are also implemented in the villages on the outskirts of the protected area.

In April 2020, the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) with the Central African authorities was renewed and the area covered by the Chinko management mandate was extended, providing for spaces dedicated to strict conservation, and others intended for integrated management of a functional landscape, within which human activities such as transhumance or fishing can be linked in the long term with the preservation of ecosystems.

As such, it should be noted that most of one of the best preserved tropical savannah river in the world - the Chinko - is now almost entirely included in a protected area in order to reconcile conservation and sustainable development. In fact, taking into account the ACC, the Zémongo Wildlife Reserve and the buffer zone that it is planned to formalize to the north-west of Rafaï, these are 52,100 km ² out of a total of 52,817 km ² (watershed full) which will be protected, i.e. 98% of the entire catchment area of ​​a river with water all year round, the flow of which varies from 56 m 3 (dry season) to 1,098 m 3 (rainy season), or 397 m 3 on average over the year.

The USAID-CBCWT project

The Community-Based Counter Wildlife Traficking (CBCWT) project has been launched since June 2018 for 5 years. This regional project is extended to Garamba National Park, to the Bili-Uéré Hunting Area in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and to the Chinko Conservation Area in the Central African Republic. This USAID-funded project, led by African Parks, aims to intervene with the communities residing in and on the outskirts of the three protected areas, to promote livelihoods and income-generating activities compatible with the conservation of natural resources. In Chinko, the themes targeted by the project primarily concern village fishing and hunting, transhumance, and artisanal mining.

Lotic environments and fishing in the Chinko Conservation Area and its periphery

The hydrographic network of the ACC and its surroundings is characterized by its high density linked to its high level of branching. This network presents a great diversity of aquatic environments and habitats. The large meandering rivers with low flow are home to species of freshwater jellyfish, while the falls and rapids provide a well-oxygenated environment, favorable to other types of species such as molluscs (long-thorn mussels). In the north of the ACC, the riparian forests border the small temporary watercourses while in the south, the Chinko river and its main tributary, the Vovodo, present in places a depth of more than 3 m in the dry season and higher ( and even 17 exceptionally), so many refuges for aquatic life. These watercourses cross sub-equatorial forests where dead wood constitutes a habitat of choice for many species. In the deep water, there are a few large specimens of Nile perch, tiger goliath fish, catfish that thrive alongside hippos - the population still small today is growing - and crocodiles.

This environment, which has remarkable potential from a tourist point of view in the context of a sport fishing activity, has however been little studied so far, which has led to significantly underestimating its richness in terms of biodiversity. However, the first preliminary inventories carried out by the Chinko team confirmed the presence of at least 70 different species of fish, for a diversity of at least 150 species according to the team's initial estimates.

This remarkably preserved biodiversity in an environment plagued by instability, however, suffers from various threats of anthropogenic origin. In the outskirts of Chinko, gold mining activities are often carried out at the head of the watershed, in the bed of the streams near the springs. Consequently, the excess turbidity resulting from the excavation of the sediments increases the heat of the water, and lowers its oxygen content, disturbing the ecosystem over long distances downstream from the exploited site. In addition, in a context of low population density but high insecurity, communities on the outskirts of Chinko depend heavily on natural resources - in particular rivers - to meet their basic needs. Thus, we find in the region,

Preliminary surveys carried out in Rafaï by the Chinko team made it possible to highlight the importance of fishing among the activities practiced by households. These combine several activities and means of existence ( livelihoods ) articulated according to the opportunities and seasonal necessities. These interviews also highlighted the preference of fishermen for large specimens (large predators) such as Lates niloticus , Hydrocinus goliath , large fish of the genus Mormyrus or the species of electric fish Malapterurus electricus . Furthermore, the only preservation technique known and practiced by fishermen is limited to drying the fish over the fire.

The second major river in the region is the Mbari, which is much more affected by human activities than the Chinko. However, the Mbari offers many possibilities for conservation and sustainable use of natural resources and can be used as an interesting pilot area for the development of new sustainable fishing techniques. The Ouara River, east of ACC, has similar potential. Three large rivers therefore run alongside each other: the Chinko, which is strictly protected for the most part, and the Mbari and the Ouara, offering overall remarkable potential for carrying out sustainable management projects with communities.

Thanks to the funding received by African Parks-Chinko, notably within the framework of the CBCWT project, the team wishes to develop better management of fishery resources through the promotion of more sustainable practices. However, if this year, the team has already established relationships with fishing communities living in the outskirts of Chinko, the need to further characterize the initial state of the environment emerged as a determining element, in order to get to know the point well. start of the collaboration with the fishermen, and to better appreciate the effect of the actions carried out by the project on the intervention environment.

It is in this need to define an initial state of aquatic ecosystems that the service covered by these terms of reference fits.

Purpose of the service

General objective:

Characterize the initial state of aquatic ecosystems and fishery resources in 4 sections of rivers in eastern Central Africa.

Specific activities:

The service must allow the following activities to be carried out:

• Describe in a robust and reproducible manner the aquatic habitats of the 4 stations identified;
• Characterize the relevant biological and physico-chemical parameters of the stations, with the appropriate level of precision, with a view to developing sustainable management of resources by fishing communities;
• Determine the diversity and biomass of the macrobenthic population of the ecosystem of the 4 sites and compare the results obtained from one site to another;
• To sample in a standardized and scientifically rigorous manner the fish populations of the 4 stations in order to determine the biomass available in the ecosystem, by distinguishing that usable by the local population (estimate of the volume of food fish), and by characterizing the species interest in sport fishing;
• Train and support young scientists from the University of Bangui who are members of the inventory team, in the collection of scientific data and the description of a freshwater course, in the characterization of the aquatic system and in the 'identification of key species;
• Set up a working environment conducive to scientific rigor, as well as to the sharing of experience and skills with the Chinko teams on the one hand, and with interns from the University of Bangui as well as the fishermen participating in the inventories , on the other hand. Thus, in the two stations identified near Rafaï and Bangassou (Niakari), the team will work in concert with the local fishermen who will subsequently benefit from the activities carried out by Chinko. The latter will recover most of the fish caught according to the methods that the Chinko team will have defined and the fish can be smoked and dried on site. Likewise, in the two non-operated stations located inside the ACC.

Thus, in their proposals, the consultant will ensure that his expertise is calibrated to the level required for the context of intervention. This first aims to characterize the initial state of the environment alongside local fishermen to constitute a common working basis, and to initiate collaboration in order to develop sustainable management plans for the fishery resource providing for ecological monitoring. participatory.

Study area and location of the mission

The service will take place in the east of the country, in the Mbomou prefecture (Bangassou and Rafaï sub-prefectures) in the following pre-identified sites (see appendices 1 and 2 ):

• lower course of the Mbari river exploited by local fishermen: section of 3 km corresponding to 25 ha located 7 km by the runway, from Bangassou airport (4.831027N-22.762296E);
• non-anthropized upper course of the Mbari river: section of 3 km corresponding to 10 ha (5.896956N-23.337838E), located 10 km by the runway from the landing site;
• non-anthropized site at the confluence of the Chinko and Vovodo rivers: section of 3 km representing 60 ha (5.623578N-24.338032E), located 6 km from the airstrip, with 3.5 km of trail then 2.5 km along the river or while sailing;
• lower course of the Chinko river located near the town of Rafai, exploited by local fishermen: section of 3 km representing 49 ha (5.096874N-23.994865E), which is reached by following 1 km of track then along of the river (by footpath or by navigation) over 2.5 km or 19 km depending on the option chosen.

The project will organize and support the transfer from one station to another with the Cesna C208 aircraft from Chinko, which can carry 5 to 6 passengers and equipment for a total of 900 kg maximum.

Calendar:

In order to take advantage of the best seasonal conditions in the field, the inventory of the 4 stations will take place between February and the first week of April at the latest.

Expected results:

The consultant's work should lead to the following results:

• the diversity of habitats found at the 4 stations is mapped;
• the current state of conservation of the stations studied is defined, possible dysfunctions in the functionality of the ecosystem of certain sites are identified and corrective measures are proposed;
• the results obtained are compared from one site to another, in particular the sections of intact rivers of the ACC with those exploited by the fishermen and the observed differences are explained;
• the parameters to be monitored for ecological monitoring and the indicator species to be monitored (fish or other taxa) are defined and the Chinko team is able to ensure continuity with simple monitoring, carried out jointly with the fishermen;
• local fishermen are involved in inventory work and their skills are valued;
• the skills of young scientists from the University of Bangui in the study of freshwater aquatic systems are strengthened;
• the level of potential resources for feeding communities and for sport fishing is quantified and the emblematic species identified.

Deliverables:

The deliverables to be submitted as part of this service are as follows:

1. a preliminary diagnostic report to be submitted 1 and a half months after returning from the field phase;
2. a complete diagnostic report characterizing and comparing the 4 sites (including mapping), to be submitted no later than 4 months after returning from the field, including a detailed description of the methodological approach and possible optimizations taking into account the feedback in the field and giving detailed guidance for subsequent inventories and follow-up / monitoring work;
3. a photo library (in the form of an accessible photo database and a summary in the form of a powerpoint or other) presenting the species of fish and macro-benthos inventoried and identifying the species of interest for conservation, local communities on the one hand, and for sport fishing on the other;
4. the shapefile layers of habitat mapping.

Hours of work:

The proposed duration of the service will include:

• A brief preliminary phase of framing and coordination preceding the departure for CAR;
• A field mission in the Central African Republic of around 5-6 weeks during which the consultant's team will work in a mobile camp / laboratory which will be moved successively to the 4 stations (count 4 days of fieldwork per site and 3 days for the trip from one site to another and for the installation of the equipment), in order to carry out the measurements of the various parameters, the samples of fish and macrobenthos, the quantification of the biomass and a first phase of identification of species;
• A complementary phase of species identification, analysis and reporting lasting a maximum of 4 months.

Profile of the Consultant:

The consultant's team should include experts who combine the following skills:

• High-level expertise with more than 10 years of experience in the ecological diagnosis of freshwater aquatic environments (ichthyology, macro-benthic population, measurements of biological and physicochemical parameters, malacology, aquatic ecology, etc.);
• Expertise and significant experience in the diagnosis of tropical aquatic environments including in Africa (Central Africa if possible);
• GIS and cartographer of aquatic habitats;
• Editorial quality of reports and formatting of the guide / photo library;
• Experience of working in a protected area context appreciated, ability to carry out fieldwork in very isolated sites, in rudimentary comfort.

How to apply

The offer to be submitted by the consultant will include the following:

1. A technical proposal with:

• Understanding of the terms of reference;
• The proposed methodology detailing the various stages proposed for carrying out the diagnosis;
• A detailed schedule of the service, from the preliminary phase of the mission, arrival in Bangui, departure on site for inventories, closure of the field mission and the reporting and analysis phase;
• The role of the different members of the proposed team including their CVs;
• The list of necessary equipment, distinguishing between that provided by the consultant (specifying its weight) and that which the project will have to make available to him on site.

2. A financial proposal with:

• Details of the consultant's fees according to the days worked, accommodation and catering costs (in Bangui only, allow 2 days for the outward and return journey);
• The cost of international travel (plane tickets);
• Fishing and inventory equipment brought by the consultant to be returned to Chinko.

National transport (including visas), organization of the camp with food and accommodation on the site, support for local fishermen, day laborers and young scientists from the University of Bangui, rental of the boat and non-specific equipment will be supported by the project according to the needs communicated by the consultant.

Technical and financial offers should be sent by email to:

eliel@africanparks.org ; thierry@chinkoproject.com; olivier@africanparks.org no later than January 16, 2021 at 6 p.m. (GTM + 2). **