The project focuses on enhancing the effectiveness, inclusiveness, and sustainability of Angola’s Protected Area (PA) system, with Quiçama National Park (QNP) as a flagship site. Its core strategy is to build institutional and community capacity, foster participatory governance, and establish sustainable conservation financing mechanisms, including a conservation trust fund. A central element is the empowerment of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IP&LCs), particularly women, to take active roles in land and resource management around PAs. This includes representation on the project steering committee and access to targeted financial support through a special grant-making scheme promoting cooperative governance.

The project strengthens gender-sensitive and socially inclusive PA management, aiming to position QNP as a national hub for innovative conservation practices. Improved management effectiveness and financial sustainability will generate Global Environmental Benefits (GEBs) by reducing biodiversity loss and contributing to climate resilience across Angola’s broader PA system, which spans over 13.4 million hectares of terrestrial and 6,700 hectares of marine ecosystems. The project will directly benefit an estimated 10,000 people (50.5% women), including INBAC staff, PA rangers, civil society actors, and approximately 2,000 IP&LC households. By addressing immediate capacity needs at QNP and establishing scalable systems, the project creates a replicable model for protected area governance and financing across Angola.