RWCA Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association

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We will occasionally let you know what we have been up to and when we have any special events coming up.

OUR PROJECTS

SAVING THE ENDANGERED GREY CROWNED CRANES

RWCA is using a holistic and multi-disciplinary approach to reverse the declining trend of the endangered Grey Crowned Cranes in Rwanda

BAT RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION

A quarter of all global bat species are known to be threatened due to the loss of foraging habitats and roosts mainly caused by human activities.

YOUTH ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION PROGRAMME

We want young people in Rwanda to understand the importance of wildlife and natural habitats. We aim to inspire the next generation of conservationists in Rwanda.

COMBATTING ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING

Illegal Wildlife Trafficking is a global problem and one that affects us all. Read more about Rwanda’s first symposium on illegal wildlife trafficking.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

We work with local communities to encourage local people to take pride in Rwanda’s wildlife. We aim to change attitudes and behaviours towards wildlife and their habitat.

UMUSAMBI VILLAGE

We have restored 21 hectares of wetland in Kigali which is now home to over 50 disabled Grey Crowned Cranes rescued from captivity. We welcome visitors to this unique nature reserve.

Visit Umusambi Village Website

HABITAT RESTORATION

RWCA is committed to restoring and protecting natural habitats. We have a nationwide programme promoting the planting of indigenous trees to benefit both people and wildlife.

RESTORING POPULATION OF SITATUNGA

Sitatunga are hunted for meat and rapidly disappearing from Rwanda’s wetlands. RWCA is working with local communities to monitor and protect the species to restore their population.

PROTECTING THREATENED SHOEBILL

We are using our skills and experience in community conservation models and applying it to a new project to monitor and protect threatened Shoebill.

AFRICAN GREY PARROTS

African Grey Parrots are endangered and threatened by the international pet trade and nearly extinct in Rwanda. We are exploring ways to raise awareness and fight the illegal trade

Coming Soon

GREY CROWNED CRANES REMOVED FROM CAPTIVITY AND REINTRODUCED INTO THE WILD

INDIGENOUS TREES PLANTED IN AREAS ACROSS RWANDA

LOCAL LEADERS TRAINED TO INCREASE LAW ENFORCEMENT AROUND KEY CRANE HABITATS

WHAT WE DO

Dr Olivier Nsengimana and the Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association

OUR MISSION TO CONSERVE RWANDAN WILDLIFE

“The mission of our organisation is to apply home-grown solutions to protect and restore threatened wildlife and wild places.“

Dr. Olivier Nsengimana Founder & Executive Director, RWCA

Our Goals Are Clear

We aim to:

Provide a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach to critical conservation issues in order to create sustainable solutions
Protect wildlife and natural habitats
Engage and educate local communities and improve livelihoods
Raise awareness of conservation issues
Build the capacity of young Rwandese veterinarians and conservationists
Disseminate high quality research and evaluation

LATEST NEWS

Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Associations

Job advert_RWCA Senior Officer_Conservation Education

OUR TEAM

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Dr. Olivier Nsengimana Founder & Executive Director, RWCA

In 2014, Olivier designed a unique conservation project to abolish the illegal trade of the endangered Grey Crowned Cranes in Rwanda and won the Rolex Award for Enterprise which allowed him to start implementing the work. He established Rwanda Wildlife Conservation Association in 2015 to build on the work with Grey Crowned Cranes and expand research and conservation efforts to other endangered and threatened species in Rwanda, and the East African region.

Olivier has been a finalist in the 2016 Tusk Conservation Awards, received the 2017 National Geographic Buffett Award for Leadership in Conservation in Africa, the 2018 Whitley award, the 2019 Future For Nature Award and most recently the 2020 Virginia McKenna Award for Compassionate Conservation, for his conservation work in Rwanda. Olivier is a Doctor in Veterinary Medicine and has a Master of Veterinary Science, Conservation Medicine from the University of Edinburgh, UK.

It’s the people that make us great!

A key aim of this organisation is to build capacity of young Rwandan veterinarians and conservationists. Providing them with unique and interesting work experience in wildlife conservation will inspire them to continue and advance the field of wildlife conservation in Rwanda.

Thank you! We couldn’t do it without you

MEET THE WHOLE TEAM!

2018 WHITLEY AWARD WINNER

2016 TUSK AWARD FINALIST

ROLEX LAUREATE

SAVING RWANDA’S ENDANGERED SPECIES, ONE AT A TIME

2017 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP IN CONSERVATION

BIRDMAN OF RWANDA

2020 VIRGINIA MCKENNA AWARD

WASHINGTON POST

WAYS TO GET INVOLVED

We are a small organisation and we need your help.

SPREAD THE WORD

Take the time to raise awareness about the work we are doing – send an e-mail, share a photo or comment on facebook or let us know about opportunities for networking or fundraising that you might know about.

HOLD A FUNDRAISER

Organise a local fundraiser through your school, family and friends, or in your community

DONATE FUNDS OR EQUIPMENT

Make a donation to the work of RWCA. Please contact us and we can send you our bank account details. In addition, you can donate useful equipment or services to help our organisation. In the past we have had donations of binoculars, wet weather gear, laboratory equipment and academic books!

VOLUNTEER IN RWANDA

If you have a skills and experience that we can put to good use in Rwanda, then we would love to hear from you. This might be delivering veterinary or conservation skills training to our team and getting involved with our field work or may be office based, assisting us with developing our monitoring and evaluation tools or grant writing.

PATROLS COMPLETED PER YEAR BY OUR RUGEZI MARSH RANGERS

SCHOOL CHILDREN EDUCATED AND PLEDGED TO PROTECT GREY CROWNED CRANES

COMMUNITY MEMBERS ENGAGED IN AWARENESS RAISING EVENTS PER YEAR