Inscribed :1979 Criteria: N (ii) (iii) (iv)

Justification for Inscription:
Report of the 3rd Session of the Committee

Inscription on the List of World Heritage in Danger: 1994
Justification for Inscription: Report of the 18th Session of the Committee

Brief description:
The park of Virunga offers within its 790,000 hectares an incomparable diversity of habitats: from swamps and steppes to the snowfields of Rwenzori at an altitude of over 5,000 m, and from the lava plains to the savannahs on the slopes of the volcanoes. Some 20,000 hippopotamuses live in its rivers, mountain gorillas find refuge there and birds from Siberia spend the winter there.

Threats to the Site:
Virunga National Park was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger at the 18th Session of the World Heritage Committee (1994) in the wake of the war in neighbouring Rwanda and the subsequent massive influx of refugees from that country which led to massive deforestation and poaching at the site. Many members of the Park staff had not been remunerated for almost a year. Poaching of wildlife has continued and the staff lacks the means of patrolling the Park's 650 km long boundary. The human population in the fishing village near Lake Edward has increased several fold, posing a serious threat to the integrity of the Park. The fuel wood requirements of almost one million refugees camping inside the Park is estimated at 600 metric tons/day and is leading to widespread depletion of forests in the lowlands. Fortunately, the mountain gorilla whose habitat is at a higher altitude, have been spared so far.

In December 1996, the World Heritage Committee had considerable discussion on the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the human tragedy unfolding there. The Committee noted that a major effort would be required over the next decade to rehabilitate and strengthen management of Virunga and to obtain local support for its conservation. Its decision was communicated to UNHCR and other agencies involved in the management of refugee camps in and around Virunga. The national government was informed of the Committee's willingness to co-operate with IUCN as well as other institutions such as the World Bank, and to provide technical co-operation and training assistance, the better to face current threats to the site.

Natural site datasheet from WCMC