Oryx and WCS Cessna shadow, Boma National Park. Photo by Paul Elkan and J. Michael Fay. ©2007 National Geographic/ Wildlife Conservation Society

The US’s Wildlife Conservation society has renewed its commitment to continue supporting wildlife protection program in the Boma-Badingilo Landscape for another 15 years.

Joe Walston, the Executive Vice President of the Wildlife Conservation society announced the deal during his meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mayiik Ayii Monday.

“we are here to both celebrate 15 years of our effort together and to make concrete another 15 years of effort to support the Boma-Badingilo Landscape which is so important for wildlife and the communities, and also hopefully for the future development of tourism into the country,” he said.

The Wildlife Conservation Society is a non-governmental organization with headquarters at the Bronx Zoo in New York City.

Its focus is to conserve the world’s largest wild places in 14 priority regions.

The Wildlife Conservation society has been implementing a U.S government $7.5 million project since 2019 to support conservation of wildlife, natural resources and protected areas in South Sudan.

The funding which ended this year aimed at enabling the project build sustainable livelihoods and mitigate conflict in and around Boma and Badingilo national parks.

Tom Hushek, U.S then Ambassador to South Sudan, who launched the USAID funded project said the financial package was to address the increasing pressure on wildlife -from poachers and traffickers, and the unregulated developments in the parks and reserves.

In 2017, the government of South Sudan called for a special care in protecting endangered animals.

It said South Sudan was known to be a home for elephants, a great number of cheetah, ostrich, Nile crocodile, pangolins, among others, but are at risk of extinction.

The endangered species also include Black and white Rhinos and lions and African leopard.

“South Sudan is one of those blessed countries in Africa and for us it is one of the most important country in Africa that WCS seeks to be able to suppor,” according to Walston.

Speaking to journalist on Monday, Walston said the 15-year support aims to attract American government investors to support the country’s wildlife and tourism sector.

“As an American organization we spend much of our time in promoting investment of the American government and American Civil Society in South Sudan,” he concluded.