Get Guardian on GoogleThe Africa Nature Investors (ANI) Foundation has commissioned a Women Development Centre at Tonga (Bodel), in Gashaka Local Government Area of Taraba State, as part of efforts to promote women’s economic empowerment, improve community livelihoods and strengthen conservation partnerships.
The centre, established through the partnership between the National Park Service and Africa Nature Investors (ANI) Foundation, and supported by the European Union (EU), is expected to serve women in Serti, Bodel, Goje and Mayo Selbe communities.
Executive Director of ANI Foundation, Mr. Tunde Morakinyo, said the foundation has continued to attract support, including funding from the European Union, to drive development initiatives in and around the national park, explaining that the Women’s Development Centre was designed to provide a platform for women to come together, acquire relevant skills and improve their economic opportunities.
Morakinyon highlighted some of the foundation’s interventions, including support for farmers through beekeeping initiatives and the vaccination of thousands of cattle, and disclosed plans by the foundation to construct three blocks of classrooms in each of the communities across Gashaka Local Government Area as part of efforts to improve access to education.
The commissioning of the centre on Thursday, November 13, is expected to strengthen women’s participation in economic activities while deepening cooperation between host communities, conservation authorities and development partners in protecting the Gashaka Gumti National Park, which is the largest park in the country.
Also speaking at the commissioning ceremony, George Karngong, the Conservator of the Park at Gashaka Gumti National Park, described the project as another milestone in the partnership between the National Park Service and ANI Foundation. He said the facility would provide a common platform for women to participate in skills acquisition, cooperative activities, vocational training, agricultural processing and entrepreneurship.
According to him, the centre will also serve as a hub for the several women’s savings groups established by ANI Foundation in the communities surrounding the park, enabling them to mobilise savings, exchange ideas, access training and establish small-scale businesses to improve household incomes and economic independence.
Karngong, who commended ANI Foundation for its sustained partnership with the National Park Service, listed the foundation’s interventions to include alternative livelihood programmes, scholarships, building of blocks of classrooms and teachers’ quarters, community savings groups, provision of potable water, cattle vaccination, volunteer ranger initiatives and environmental restoration projects.
He noted that the initiative aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly its emphasis on empowering women and youths through skills acquisition and sustainable livelihood opportunities, as well as Taraba State Governor Agbu Kefas’ development agenda, especially in the areas of infrastructure, job creation, and economic empowerment.
“Conservation cannot succeed through enforcement alone; it requires the active participation and support of surrounding communities,” the CP stated, stressing that empowering women with alternative livelihood opportunities would reduce excessive dependence on the park’s natural resources and encourage stronger community participation in conservation.
He also appealed to Governor Kefas to extend more support to the park, particularly through the provision of operational logistics such as patrol vehicles, motorcycles, communication equipment and other essential facilities, while describing Gashaka Gumti National Park as a strategic national asset with significant contributions to climate change mitigation, watershed protection, tourism, research, education, employment and economic development.
Leader of the European Union Delegation, Iusan Liviu, expressed satisfaction with the initiative, describing it as a positive step towards community development and institutional strengthening. Liviu, who called for collective commitment from stakeholders to build a sustainable partnership capable of delivering additional development opportunities and promoting shared responsibility, assured that the European Union would continue to support ANI Foundation’s interventions towards improving the welfare of communities and strengthening the management of the park.
On his own, Taraba State Commissioner for Heritage and Ecotourism, Titus Nagombe, commended ANI Foundation for its positive contributions to communities surrounding the park, describing the establishment of the Women Development Centre as a significant intervention while urging women in the communities to take full advantage of the opportunities it offers.
The Special Guest of Honour and Taraba State Commissioner for Women and Child Development, Mrs. Mary Sinjen, urged beneficiaries to develop a strong maintenance culture to ensure the centre serves present and future generations. She assured that her ministry was ready to strengthen collaboration with ANI Foundation to promote women’s development and improve their economic wellbeing.
In his remarks, the Chairman of Gashaka Local Government Council, Hon. Umar Alluran Gari, described ANI Foundation as a dependable partner in progress and urged residents to continue supporting the foundation and the National Park Service. The chairman expressed optimism that sustained community support would enable the park to achieve greater development, while calling on the foundation to intensify efforts to address the increasing influx of people into the park.
Similarly, the Lamdo Gashaka, Alhaji Zubairu Hammangabdo, who spoke on behalf of traditional rulers from Bodel and Mayo Selbe, acknowledged the foundation’s various empowerment projects in the area. He called on residents to sustain their support for ANI Foundation and the management of Gashaka-Gumti National Park, describing the partnership as beneficial to the development of local communities.
“ANI is here for progress. They have impacted positively on our people. Let us support conservation and the development of Gumti National Park,” the traditional ruler said while also appealing to development partners to support the foundation and the National Park Service in their efforts to strengthen the park and improve the livelihoods of surrounding communities.
The Women Development Centre in Gashaka Local Government, as observed by The Guardian, represents the second of such facilities built by the ANI Foundation. The first was commissioned in Toungo Local Government, Adamawa State in 2025 and serves women in several communities in the northern sector of the park, which falls into Adamawa State.
