This document, entitled “Manual for the implementation of ecological monitoring of national parks and natural reserves in Côte d'Ivoire” was written by the Ivorian Office of Parks and Reserves (OIPR) for the attention of managers of National Parks and Natural Reserves (PNR), technical and financial partners who support its conservation actions and development actors interested in the conservation of nature in Côte d'Ivoire.
Its publication responds to the desire of the OIPR, to communicate on the proposed strategic and methodological framework for carrying out ecological monitoring in PNRs, in accordance with the objectives and recommendations of the Framework Programme for the Management of Protected Areas (PCGAP).
This Manual offers approaches that have already been scientifically and technically proven by organizations specialized in wildlife management such as WCS and IUCN. It is also based on the conclusions resulting from the discussions initiated in 2014 and 2015 by the OIPR and its partners in the world of research on the ecological monitoring of forest and savannah parks in Côte d'Ivoire. And that, it is a reference document for the development of field guides and the effective planning of operations in protected areas.
In its structure, this manual recalls, from the outset, the guiding principles, the general objectives and the areas of intervention of the SE. In its second part, it presents a selection of monitoring methods, to be recommended according to the typology, context and management objectives assigned to PNRs. Finally, the last part addresses the question of the valorization of data produced by ecological monitoring and formulates general recommendations for the attention of all actors at the decision-making and operational levels for the coordinated conduct of activities in the field, in line with the objectives of managing the PNR network.
The Manual for the Execution of Ecological Monitoring of National Parks and Natural Reserves in Côte d'Ivoire therefore constitutes, at the operational level, a set of strategic options selected for the conduct of this management function. Through the options proposed, it reflects the firm desire of the OIPR to provide the best possible framework for its implementation in the field.