 Built
for JGI by Conoco in 1992, Tchimpounga is situated on
a coastal plain of savannah and galleried mosaic forest
patches. The sanctuary is located 31 miles (50km) north
of Pointe Noire in the region of Kouilou, Republic
of Congo and is the largest chimpanzee sanctuary
on the African continent. Currently the sanctuary is
housing 115 orphaned chimpanzees - a number that is
rapidly growing. Over the last two years, we have had
40 chimpanzees brought to our sanctuary, and in the
past year alone, we have seen more than a 20 percent
increase in the chimpanzee population at the sanctuary.
For more than ten years, the Tchimpounga Sanctuary
has provided a refuge in the Congo Basin for chimpanzees
orphaned by the bushmeat trade. In most cases, the Congolese
authorities deliver the chimpanzees to the sanctuary
after confiscating them from hunters trying to sell
the young chimps into the pet or entertainment trades.
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