Situated at a height between 300 and 1200 m, on the Niefang chain range, and at 50 km from the Atlantic, the deep and wet forest of the Monte Alen national park stretches on 1600 Km².

The bumpy feature of the ground gives a beauty to the landscape. Not to mention the presence of a series of falls and spectacular rapids the Uoro and lana rivers.

The forest of Monte Alen shelters a fauna and a flora typical to the thick African forest, with species characteristic of the guinea-Atlantic zone.

Abundant with vegetal from the Caesalpiniaceae family, it offers a great variety of species.In spite of the little acreage of the park , more than 105 species of mammals are itemised, with 16 species of primates:

3800 gorillas,

• 1600 chimpanzees,

• 2300 species of birds,

• 65 species of reptiles,

• 55 species of amphibians

• 65 species living in an aquatic milieu.

More than 50 people work on the territory of the park.

The Equato Guinean government adopted in 1997, a project of decree-law because of the intense exploitation of the forest; this after being conscious of the conservation and the bettering of the national forest patrimony. This law grants the National park of Monte Mitra, a 600km² extension towards the South connecting it to the national park of Monte Mitra; Nowadays, 10% of the country are classified in protected zones.

The Central Africa harbours the second forest massif on the earth.The first one is in Amazonian. With no equivalent biodiversity, its wealth still remain quite unknown. As an important resource for the men who live in or besides it the exploited forest rationally is very important factor of development. It forms a coherent in which the stability is base on the multiples interdependence between plants and animals. Without these last one it becomes poor because of vectors of productions.

The Ecofac programs mixes two basics notion and complimentary: the conservation of the development. It concretise with the engagement of European union to assure the safeguard and the rational use of the ecosystem in Central Africa forest, to associate closely populations to the acts that the put in work.

At the beginning of the program inside that hemmed zone and without economic activities, the exploration of forest natural resource was representing for the population, the only source of income or satisfaction for their prime needs.

Today stores have been put in places in villages. They supply at low rate products of first necessities (candles petroleum matches) and basics elements (salt, sugar flour) with the basic capital brought by the composing each store buy a stock from start that the product of the selling will allow to get.

© Copyright, Equatorial Guinea April 2002