About the Organisation
African Parks (AP) is a non-profit conservation organization dedicated to the long-term management of protected areas in collaboration with governments and local communities. Managing 22 protected areas across 12 countries and covering over 20 million hectares, AP strives for ecological, financial, and socio-political sustainability to benefit both people and wildlife. Its approach integrates conservation with socio-economic development, addressing key needs such as water access, literacy, and food security, while fostering sustainable livelihoods that reduce reliance on natural resources. Through these efforts, AP supports national governments and stakeholders in promoting lasting environmental and community well-being.
About the Job
The Programme Manager: Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) will define and lead the AP programme to enable community-led conservation efforts in the landscape through CBNRM and other initiatives (e.g. restoration). Engaging communities actively in conservation begins with the recognition and protection of their established use and access rights. AP can then support these rights-holders to establish community-led governance structures, and to build capacity for sustainable resource management on community land.
Key Responsibilities
Defining policy and procedures for park teams on how to:
Identify opportunities for CBNRM, and integrate into park plan and budget;
Create conservancies or OECMs (where possible) with legal definition and protection of rights;
Establish governance mechanisms, and build capacity to enable sustainable resource utilisation;
Create revenue models to enable benefit flows and long-term sustainability.
Supporting implementation of pilot projects and codifying best practice.
Supporting efforts to secure funding for CBNRM, and parks’ implementation of benefit-sharing mechanisms.
Building team capacity to support community-led conservation (e.g. managing partnerships, facilitating consultations).
Requirements
Post-graduate qualification in Agricultural Sciences/International Development/Conservation/ Rural Development or a related field.
Minimum of 5 years of experience in CBNRM, with a focus on execution with rural communities in Africa. Experience with cooperative management or social enterprise development is a plus.
Excellent communication and presentation skills in English. French and/or Portuguese fluency is a plus.
Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with ability to work across cultures and to foster collaboration.
Affinity with conservation and social development in Africa.
Willingness to travel to remote rural settings.
To apply
To apply, email your application by Monday 24th March 2025 to melissa@actionappointments.co.za
