Great Apes Survival Project

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Established in 2001, the Great Apes Survival Project (GRASP) aims to conserve the great apes (chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans) and their habitat — primarily forested tropical ecosystems that provide important services to humanity, through pro-poor conservation and sustainable development strategies.

GRASP is a UNEP and UNESCO-led World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) Type II Partnership bringing together all the principal institutional actors in great ape conservation — United Nations agencies, biodiversity-related multilateral environmental agreements, great ape range state and donor governments, non-governmental organizations, scientists, local communities and the private sector.

The great apes are found in 21 countries in Africa (Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda) and in two countries in South East Asia (Malaysia and Indonesia).

Great ape populations are declining worldwide. The continuing destruction of habitat, in combination with the growth in the commercial bushmeat trade in Africa and increased logging activities in Indonesia, have lead scientists to suggest that the majority of great ape populations may be extinct in our lifetime. Even if isolated populations were to survive, the long-term viability of great apes is in doubt due to their limited numbers and the fragmentation of their habitat.

The endangered great apes share their habitat with millions of people majority of whom live below the poverty line. The need to link the welfare of humans and wildlife is a central objective of the GRASP Partnership.

International commitment to the great apes was reaffirmed at an Intergovernmental Meeting on great apes and the first GRASP Council Meeting held in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in September 2005, where the Kinshasa Declaration on Great Apes was adopted by more than 70 signatories.