The document provides an update on the progress and activities of CERCOPAN, a conservation organization working in Nigeria. It discusses how the elected Community Conservation & Development Committee (CCDC) in Iko Esai village has made excellent progress in various development projects, including renovating the secondary school. With assistance from CERCOPAN, the CCDC was also able to obtain funding to begin work on a new bridge. The article notes that CERCOPAN's goal is to build the CCDC's capacity so that the village can take ownership of its own development needs.

1. CERCO‐NEWS
VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1 J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 1
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Help yourselves! 1
Help yourselves!
From the 2 It’s been just over a is enacted in a sustainable
Director year now since a new way, through monitoring
Community Conservation and enforcing by‐laws,
Checking his list 2 & Development Comm‐ such as where farming is
ittee (CCDC) was elected allowed (see October
A game of two 2
in our host village Iko Esai, 2010 CERCONEWS).
halves and we are able to report The second area we
that they have made help them with is in
excellent progress on all gaining external support Ricky Joe, the Project Manager
New property… 3
stunning views! fronts. Their latest project for development projects researching grants and in
of renovating the in the village, and in proposal writing, the
secondary school in the implementing those village successfully
Mama mia here I 4
go again
village is testament that projects. applied to the Cross River
our considerable efforts Following dis‐cussions State Social and
to re‐start and energise with key people in the Community Fund for
Calabar Skill 4 this organisation have community, the CCDC support for these
Centre
been very worthwhile. concluded that the most projects.
Our goal is to build the pressing areas in need of The CCDC, led by
Where there’s 5
less smoke…. capacity of the CCDC to attention were Chairman Stanley Obo,
the point that Iko Esai renovation of the has been working hard
village has ownership of secondary school, and a within the village to
A Princely gift 5
its needs for bridge on the road to the provide the 30%
development. We are highway that allows counterpart funding
Want to be a part 6 training the CCDC in two access to external required, and to organise
of it ? areas. Firstly to ensure markets and services. the community labour.
that the village’s land use With our assistance in Community involvement
and support has been
extremely strong, with
labour and materials
provided by willing
volunteers.
Renovations to the Now the school
secondary school in renovations are nearly
Iko Esai complete, work is
expected to begin on the
bridge within a few
weeks. Hopefully this will
prove to be just the start
of a long and productive
era for the Iko Esai CCDC.

2. PAGE 2
From the Director
A beautiful childhood constant repairs required CCDC (front page), when I
novel that I still love to the ageing vehicle that recall how hard we
incorporates the belief we previously had in worked to get this group
that the colour of the first Rhoko was a permanent re‐established and
butterfly that you see in source of disruption and functioning the way it was
the year establishes your stress that we can now at intended.
fortune for the remainder last discount thanks to the And with all the
of the year. Yellow heralds generous support of the positive progress of our
a happy year, and luckily Prince Bernhard Fund for other project work that
for me the Common Grass Nature. you can read about in the
Yellow (Eurema hecabe) Our new monkey remaining articles, I really
Claire Coulson
was fluttering around low arrivals this month (see like the way 2011 is going.
CERCOPAN in my compound on page 4) came to us in good If you haven't seen a
Director January 1st. health. That made me very butterfly yet this year, you
With the delivery of a happy: it’s more often the might want to get a good
new 4WD truck shortly case that orphans are local guidebook and check
afterwards (see final brought to us having out where the yellow ones
article), who am I to suffered severe neglect or are to be found!
question the truth of this abuse.
belief? Our trucks are the I am also pleased with
backbone of our the results that are now
operation, and the coming through from the
Checking his list
Distribution of the bag of rice and salt for the Christmas gift involves
annual Christmas their family. The Chiefs meeting with a member of
gift began on 24th Council of Iko Esai and the every single Esai
December and Community Conservation household, we also use
continued over a Development Committee this opportunity to gather
two week period. (CCDC) were given information regarding
Mike Ekpe, our additional rice and salt to household size, age of
Community Liaison share between them. The family members, Head of
Officer, maintained annual Christmas gift household and household
a post in the centre serves as our thank you to income. This information is
of the village and the village for all of the used to identify and target
Mike Ekpe distributing each household was help and support they those most vulnerable, for
the Christmas gift invited to send a provide CERCOPAN future sustainable
representative to collect a throughout the year. As livelihoods projects.
A game of two halves
You know you are well‐ annual Christmas football Charging into the semi‐
integrated into local tournament! final, we suddenly lost 6‐2
village life when they ask It’s a hotly contested to Otenikapang. Then, In
you to participate in the event, and CERCOPAN is the play‐offs, Heaven
always in the thick of it surprisingly defeated us 2‐1
The each year. and we finished 4th out of 6
tournament In the round robin teams. Well you can’t win
stage this time around we the event if you want to
about to begin
started with a goalless keep good relationships,
draw with Eyeyen, and can you?!
followed this with an For the record,
extremely narrow 3‐2 loss Ebontema won 1‐0 against
against the much‐fancied Otenikapang in the final, by
Ebontema team. a penalty.

3. VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1 PAGE 3
New property...stunning views!
This month saw the
Etimbuk loving the
completion of a new
enclosure at Rhoko new enclosure
camp. Since their arrival in
2004, Mona monkeys
Etimbuk and Twiggy have
been housed at the same
site as all of our other
captive monkeys at Rhoko,
including the large
Mangabey group.
But they have now been
moved to a new forest site
remote from their former
location. This is a very
important activity relative to
the next release of Monas
into the forest and long‐
term freedom for the latter.
We are dispersing our
resident Mona population
across a variety of sites to
reduce the risk that the
“Both animals
Release group might return
to the centre of captive quickly recovered
populations. from their
Our short‐term construc‐ Vet to make a trip up from Veterinarian Graham Brown
tion volunteer Tjark Plat Calabar to move them. also took the opportunity to experience and
masterminded the building This involved both take blood samples from the are now enjoying
of the new enclosure and monkeys being blow‐darted, Release group for a final
now, not only do they have and then the anaesthetised health screen.
their new
more stimulation with their animals were carried along Analysis of the blood surroundings”
new forest view, but with forest trails to their new samples is an important
the new environmental home far deeper into the preparation step prior to
enrichment added, they forest. the group’s imminent
have a plethora of logs, Both animals quickly reintroduction, and is
shrubs, swings and branches recovered from their performed to minimise the
to add more levels and experience and are now risk of our release monkeys
variety to their living space. enjoying their new passing on any diseases to
Once the enclosure was surroundings. the resident population of
completed it was up to our Whilst visiting Rhoko, Monas in the forest.
Veterinarian Graham
blow‐darting in
preparation for the
move

4. PAGE 4
Mama mia, here I go again
This month saw the Their mother would all this time in the same
arrival of two new Putty‐ have been killed to be enclosure together.
Nosed Guenons, Chico and eaten, but her babies The housing they were
Mama. The two guenons survived, being too small. kept in was much better
are victims of the bush Instead they were kept than we normally see, and
meat trade. as pets in a village near both of them were in good
Akampa to the North of health and body condition
Calabar. After three years, when they arrived, so they
their keeper decided that had not been poorly
he could not look after treated, as is often the
them any longer. case.
Fortunately he got to They are currently being
Best buddies hear about CERCOPAN, and kept in our quarantine area
he asked us to take them before any attempts are
into long‐term care. made to introduce them
Chico, a male, and both to a bigger group. But
Mama, a female, are both presently their prospects
about three and a half look good for rehabilitation
years old and are clearly within a more natural social
best buddies, having spent structure than they could
have hoped for before.
Calabar Skill Centre
We have been lucky for the Last year we were fortunate machine along with an angle
last few months to have had enough to receive a captive grinder. Tjark, with the aid of
Tjark Plat, a skilled welder and care grant from the our Nigerian staff, has
enclosure builder, join our International Primatological completed one enclosure, and
team. Tjark has been building Society to build a new the second is well on the way.
primate enclosures in the UK mangabey enclosure. This grant This has been a great
for many years so we have was used along with money opportunity for a highly skilled
been putting his experience to from various other individual volunteer from the UK to come
good use. donors to demolish two to Nigeria and capacity‐build
enclosures, next door to and pass on some of his varied
each other, and build two skills to our staff. Among other
new and much better things, Tjark has trained staff
enclosures on the same site. members to cut and prepare
The old enclosures were lengths of steel pipe with the
constructed mainly out of grinder and then weld different
wood and mesh. The wood sections of pipe together.
had not lasted well and was These are extremely useful
in constant need of repair. skills, as we are currently in the
We have reused a lot of the process of replacing a number
mesh and this time of other enclosures, and
constructed the framework looking to move our operations
of the enclosure out of steel. to a new site at the University
These new enclosures of Calabar.
New equipment,
should stand the test of time The new enclosures have
and new skills much better. been constructed in such a way
For this project we that they can be taken apart
purchased a welding and assembled at the new site.

5. VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1 PAGE 5
Where there’s less smoke….
Fuel‐efficient wood‐
stoves, produce less smoke, The first
use about one third of the stove, in use
wood required, and they
cook quicker! For women in
the village, that looks like a
winning formula.
As the ones who have to
trek to the forest to gather
the wood for cooking, this
will mean a lighter load and
fewer trips. Less smoke
from the kitchen fire is good
for health as well.
To learn more, our
Community Conservation
Manager (Rachel The knowledge gained will Fuel wood efficiency is
Hemingway) undertook be spread throughout both expected to have a positive
training in Calabar this communities through a series effect on forest conservation,
month to understand how of workshops. as recent base‐lining indicated
to construct the most It is hoped that the use of that up to 15 kilos of wood a “It is hoped
efficient stove possible with these woodstoves will reduce day are used in any one
that the use of
locally available materials. the communities’ total household, meaning that a
We are now taking these dependence on firewood by family of 5 can burn the these woodstoves
learnings into the villages of 50%, as well as making the equivalent of 120 small trees in will reduce the
Iko Esai and Agoi. kitchen a healthier a year. communities’
environment to be in. total dependence
on firewood by
A Princely gift 50% ”
We have just taken The truck will be used to rely on a long‐term view, since
possession of a brand‐new support our project a change in traditional practices
4‐wheel drive Toyota Hilux operations at Rhoko, and in cannot possible be achieved in
truck. This incredibly particular our 12‐month goals
important asset to us is the to expand our successful
generous donation of Prins conservation programme
Bernhard Natuurfonds (the there to the neighbouring
Prince Bernhard Fund for villages of Iko Ekperem, Agoi,
Nature). and Owai.
Prince Bernhard was the Our present truck in the
father of the current field is at the end of its life,
monarch of the being in constant need of
Netherlands, Queen Beatrix. maintenance and repairs.
He helped found WWF (the Consequently our ability to
World Wide Fund for conduct our operations
Nature), and was its first effectively was severely
President. compromised before this
In 1994 he endowed his donation.
own Foundation, with the The long‐term nature of
mission to ‘support small, this grant is particularly
preferably local initiatives important to us. Our hopes for
towards the conservation an expanded area of timescales measured by All new , and ready
and wise use of nature and protected forest beyond the months, and the Fund’s for conservation
our natural resource base’. community forest of Iko Esai recognition of this is notable. action!

6. WANT TO BE A PART OF IT? • Undertake a sponsored event to raise funds for
CERCOPAN. Use the Fundraising Pack on our
• Stay in touch with our on‐going programme by web site to help you.
bookmarking our home page
• Make a cash donation to CERCOPAN via our
http://www.cercopan.org/
website...every little helps!
and our Blog site
http://cercopan.wildlifedirect.org/ • Buy a gift for friends or family from the Good
and joining our Facebook fan page Gifts Catalogue (www.goodgifts.org). You can
http://www.facebook.com/cercopan/ buy a month's supply of fruit for growing
CERCOPAN orphan monkeys ‐ called in the
• Volunteer for CERCOPAN in either Nigeria or
catalogue 'A‐peeling Monkeys' for only £20!
the UK. We offer a range of different
The price of the gift is passed on to CERCOPAN.
programmes so there is something for
So, it is an excellent way of solving your gift
everyone! Visit our website volunteer
problems, and supporting our work!
section for further details.
Alternatively visit the CERCOPAN gift shop on
• Help CERCOPAN attain corporate funding. If our website today.
you work for a corporate sponsor who may be
• Donate useful goods and equipment such as
interested in funding CERCOPAN please
building and fencing materials, veterinary
contact claire.coulson@cercopan.org
medicines, old laptop computers etc. or
services such as printing, blood testing and
architectural design.
www.cercopan.org
http://cercopan.wildlifedirect.org
http://www.facebook.com/cercopan/
All photos in this newsletter were taken at CERCOPAN or Iko Esai
by staff, volunteers and visitors.
Photo Credits:
© Copyright CERCOPAN 2011
Design & Layout by Claire Coulson; Written by Claire Coulson, Rachel Hemingway, Amy Baxter
Edited by Claire Coulson