This information was announced on 31 July 2021, during an event celebrating World Ranger Day, organised by the National Administration of Conservation Areas (ANAC), in the Niassa Special Reserve, after the Mozambican President, Filipe Nyusi, had visited the Biodiversity Exhibition developed by the Foundation for the Conservation of Biodiversity (BIOFUND).

The main purpose of the exhibition was to highlight the courage of the forestry and wildlife rangers, making the participants aware about their role in the protection of the rich biodiversity of our country, and reached about 100 people.

In this context, photographs and panels on biodiversity were exhibited, with relevant information on species of flora and fauna and habitats, which are predominant in the Niassa Special Reserve, as well as photographs of rangers during their activities, and handicrafts made by the local communities.

During the visit, the President was impressed with the work undertaken by BIOFUND around the promotion and conservation of biodiversity, and by the local community initiatives. “It’s gratifying to see private organisations such as BIOFUND committed to protecting the environment. Furthermore the communities are playing an important role in looking for local alternatives to generate income. The exhibition illustrates the excellent work being done to protect the natural resources and to develop the communities”, stressed Filipe Nyusi

BIOFUND has been holding the Biodiversity Exhibition since 2015 and it has already reached more than 15,000 people and 120 schools in five Mozambican provinces (Maputo, Gaza, Inhambane, Manica and Zambézia).

The Niassa Special Reserve, which hosted the event, is the largest Conservation Area in Mozambique, covering about 42,400 Km2, including its buffer zone. It is one of the largest Miombo Forest reserves in the world, which shelters very significant wildlife populations and an immeasurable variety of the country’s biological diversity. This area benefits from BIOFUND through the BIO-Emergency Fund, which supports the payment of wages to rangers (whose wages were previously paid through income from tourists) and in acquiring COVID 19 prevention material, during the period of the pandemic.