Beautiful Nigeria: Kainji Lake National Park

Kainji Lake National Park is one of the largest parks in Nigeria. The merger of Zugurma game reserves and Borgue, created the park in 1979, covering an area of 5340km².

Kainji Lake National Park is located in the northwest central part of the country between latitude 9°40’N and 10°30’N and longitude 3°30’E and 5°50’E in Niger and Kwara states, 500km from Lagos and 385 km north east of Abuja.

It is one of the jewels of Nigeria containing a number of flora and fauna resources of Nigeria and nearly added with the famous Kainji Lake Oil Hydroelectric Complex.

The Park houses a lot of wildlife like: elephants, lions, buffaloes, antelope, hunting dogs, hippos, patas, monkey, lion, python, Nile crocodile, leopard, hyena, buffalo, kob, cobra, green snake, bush buck, tilapia, mountain reedbuck, red flanked duiker, oribi, grimms duiker, warthog, mongoose, stone partridge, snake head, hadada ibis, Bee eaters, electric cat fish clawless otters, hartebeest, turtles, manatees, roan goanna, baboons, antelopes, kobs, ape, Ducker, crocodile and so many others.

There are varieties of bird species, approximately 180 species of birds have been recorded. These include Secretary Bird, Ground Hornbill, jugglers, oriole warbler, great white pelicans and other rare pale arctic migrants.

The Climate exhibits wet and dry seasons from April to November and November to April respectively. The mean annual rain fall is 1100mm to 1200mm for approximately 200 days.

At Kainji Lake National Park, you can enjoy conservation-education-lectures, easy housing and restaurant, boating on the Lake plus tour of the Hydro power station, tour of cultural places, fishing, camping facilities and indoor games.

There are two rivers in the park namely, Oli Menei, Doro and Manyara Rivers.

Location: Kainji Lake National Park is located in the northwest central part of the country between latitude 9°40’N and 10°30’N and longitude 3°30’E and 5°50’E in Niger and Kwara states, 500km from Lagos and 385 km north east of Abuja.

TODAY

NCF Engage Stakeholders On Protecting Kainji Lake National Park

The decline of species within protected areas have prompted the need to pursue species conservation and protection with the consideration of both the protected areas and the surrounding communities.

This informed the decision of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) to partner with the National Park Service on a series of engagement to enhance the protection of Kainji Lake National Park (KLNP) and the population of lions and leopards within the park.

To facilitate this, a workshop held recently, titled “Stakeholders Engagement to Identify and Design Solutions for Restricted Ranching to Reduce Livestock Grazing in Kainji Lake National Park” in New Bussa, Niger State.

This engagement session is a series of activities under the “Emergency Rescue of Nigeria’s Last Populations of West African Wildcats – Lion Panthera leo and Leopard Panthera pardus” project supported by the IUCN Save our Species and funded by the European Union.

The stakeholders’ workshop was organised to identify the challenges and solutions to sustainable livelihoods practices in communities around the park.