- in these sites, strengthening the knowledge required for management and developing innovative solutions allowing to meet the challenges identified;

- and proposing appropriate training under the form of targeted modules and a regional master.

1.  About evaluations?/h1>

Since it started, the project has trained about 70 “peers experts?in the region who evaluated many management systems or parks, for example in Côte d'Ivoire, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea, Togo, Chad, Ghana, Niger or Burkina Faso (see publications section)?The recommendations made are notably used to define the management priorities for the implementation of the work programme on protected areas of the convention on biological diversity…and they also serve as a support for defining needed complementary studies or setting up conservation strategies by the States themselves.

Many actors of the conservation world such as WWF, TNC or UNESCO World Heritage Centre have developed evaluation methods. They are many but they have a common origin: the framework developed by IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA). PAPACO uses those methodologies to conduct assessments.

2.…about trainings?

The project has launched a third cycle training on protected areas management, (Master), in 2008. This training was sheltered by three institutions: Institut International d'Ingénierie de l'Eau de l'Environnement (2iE), University of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), and University of d'Abobo Adjamé (Côte d'Ivoire). 2iE having cancelled the partnership convention in June 2008, the Master is currently being restructured with other partners. In addition, the APAO project delivers priority trainings on the basis of the results of the evaluations, such as strengthening women capacities in protected areas consultation processes, information on access to conservation projects funding, targeted trainings on parks monitoring tools (such as the World Heritage Enhancing our Heritage)?This project is also the main partner of the on-going training developed by PAPACO, and which main financial support is FFEM.

PAPACO has also developed a new professional certificate in 2010. More information is available in the training section of the website.

3. About knowledge and actions?

The project also supports studies in order to have better knowledge of protected areas and their management methods, in relation with research centres. Thus, studies have been realized: one on world heritage sites management in West Africa, one on community-based protected areas, one on the contribution of hunting to conservation, one on the impact of desertic areas on conservation, one regarding Guinean PA network etc.. Also, it tries innovative solutions to go towards the most effective parks management. Many small-scale projects on equity in protected areas have thus been financed…The project supports various programmes on the fight against animal damages, on the rehabilitation of a park in Burkina Faso, on inventories…Two examples of on-going projects:

•  A study on inventories and monitoring big and medium-sized mammals in Cacheu and Cantanhez protected areas, Guinea Bissau. The study endeavours to respond to the deficit of data related to the spatial distribution and the specific richness of wildlife in Guinea Bissau land protected areas, in order to make scientific information available to park managers. It allows the collection of reliable data on wildlife (big and medium-sized mammals). In the same way, mapping is made in the aim of better giving directions to sites conservators in order to identify the best zones of biological, ecologic or tourism importance which deserve to be carefully monitored. This work is jointly done with Guinea Bissau Institute for Biodiversity and Protected Areas (IBAP).

•  A conservation project of Nienendougou biological resources reserve, Mali. The main objective of this project is to contribute to reducing bordering populations' pressure on natural resources in the Niénindougou reserve through the elaboration and implementation of appropriate sustainable management tools and the integration of the gender dimension. More specifically, it is about i) educating and raising stakeholders' awareness to natural resources management and gender equity; (ii) elaborating and disseminating a local convention on natural resources management which will specifically take into account women; iii) developing sustainable forest resources management practices, notably through the promotion of non timber forest products. This work is jointly done with the Malian NGO DONKO.

4. …and about communication

All data issued by the project are posted online on the PAPACO website and a monthly newsletter gives the state of progress of the project ( APAO newsletters ) which has progressively become the newsletter of all PAPACO activities. Various papers are also published.

APAO scientific and technical committee (CST)

APAO is monitored by a scientific and technical committee, composed of members of CMAP, experts, scientist or conservationists.
It is composed of about ten members. The CST is associated to the project's important decisions.

The main tasks of the CST are to:
* validate the candidates' profiles in order to set up the evaluators' team.
* contribute to maintaining the critical level of competence of all the evaluators,
* assure the monitoring and updating of the developed methods of evaluation,
* validate the classification by category of the type of protected areas to be evaluated and the choice of PAs retained for the evaluations,
* approve the complementary and/or capitalization studies to be conducted following initial evaluations,
* validate the nature of additional training and the content of the specialized master?