Where we work

The WWF-EARPO is defined by ten countries; Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. Although the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is within the jurisdiction of the WWF Central Africa Regional Programme Office (WWF-CARPO), WWF projects in the eastern part of DRC are managed from WWF-EARPO due to logistical reasons. WWF projects in Tanzania are managed by the Tanzania Programme Office (TPO), the only country office in the region with Programme Office status.

WWF-EARPO’s projects are mainly in 3 ecoregions. In addition, WWF-EARPO also has projects in the Mara River Basin in and , the eastern arm of the Rift Valley, the Eastern Arc montane forests, the Ethiopian highland forests and the eastern miombo woodlands found in and .

The ecoregions are the Eastern Africa Coastal Forests, the Albertine Rift Montane Forests, and the Eastern African Marine Ecoregion.

The Eastern Africa Coastal Forests Ecoregion (EACFE) extends from in the north to in the south. This ecoregion is one of the smallest of the 25 Global Biodiversity Hot spots recognised by Conservation International, and ranks first among the 25 hot spots in the density of endemic plant and vertebrate species.

The Albertine Rift Montane Forests Ecoregion (ARMFE) stretches from the northern tip of Lake Albert to the southern tip of Lake Tanganyika and extends marginally into western and eastern DRC. It is an area of exceptional endemism and contains many species threatened with global extinction, particularly within the mountain forest habitats. Species of particular conservation concern in this Ecoregion include the Mountain Gorilla, Eastern Lowland Gorilla, Chimpanzees and the African Elephant.

The Eastern African Marine Ecoregion (EAME), stretching from southern to northern (approximately 4,600 km of mainland coastline), is of significant global importance. The main habitats of open waters, coral reefs, mud flats, rocky shores, sea grass beds and mangrove forests form an interlinked mosaic of complex marine ecosystems. The ecoregion hosts rare marine species including marine turtles and dugongs.