The Siniaka-Minia National Park is located in the regions of Guéra and Moyen-Chari in Chad. It was established as an

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

Category IV area in 1965 covering an area of , due its importance for preserving

black rhinoceros The black rhinoceros (''Diceros bicornis''), also called the black rhino or the hooked-lip rhinoceros, is a species of rhinoceros native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa, including Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Moza ...

. Siniaka-Minia has been managed by the nonprofit conservation organization

African Parks African Parks is a non-governmental organization (NGO) focused on biodiversity conservation through protected area management, established in 2000 and headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was founded as the African Parks Management and ...

since 2017 in partnership with Chad's government following the success of the African Parks partnership in

Zakouma National Park Zakouma National Park () is a national park in southeastern Chad, straddling the border of Guéra Region and Salamat Region. Zakouma is the nation's oldest national park, declared a national park in 1963 by presidential decree, giving it the high ...

. In 2023, Siniaka-Minia was promoted from a Reserve to a National Park. In addition to anti-poaching measures, the organization states some of its key priorities are wildlife monitoring and infrastructure development.

Geography

The park is large plain terrain with a backdrop of a massif which rises to a height of . It is drained by the Siniaka River and Dorioum River, which are ephemeral in nature; some water holes remain for use during the summer months.

Flora and fauna

The park has broad-ranging ecosystems, from savannahs to wetlands. Vegetation in the southern part of the reserve is of Sudan savanna while in the north it consists of thorny bushes. While the reserve was established for the black rhinoceros, poaching led to local extinction in the late 1970s. Poaching has continued to be a threat as of 2024. The reserve, apart from preserving many threatened species, also contains

greater kudu The greater kudu (''Tragelaphus strepsiceros'') is a large woodland antelope, found throughout East Africa, eastern and southern Africa. Despite occupying such widespread territory (animal), territory, they are sparsely populated in most areas d ...

red-fronted gazelle The red-fronted gazelle (''Eudorcas rufifrons'') is widely but unevenly distributed gazelle across the middle of Africa from Senegal to northeastern Ethiopia. It is mainly resident in the Sahel zone, a narrow cross-Africa band south of the Sahar ...

, oribi, roan antelope,

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

and

cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...

. In January and February of 2022, African Parks moved over 900 buffalo from Zakouma National Park to Siniaka-Minia, marking the largest buffalo translocation ever undertaken. Many of the animals came from a herd at the outskirts of Zakouma, which was at risk of spilling out of the protected area and into the agricultural lands of nearby communities.

Conservation

Wild animals in the reserve are subject to degree of poaching by well armed hunters which has been difficult to control in view of lack adequate personnel and equipment to carry out effective surveillance operations. It would still need attention as there are sufficient number of mammal species which need to be conserved. African Parks states that one of the organizations key priorities is working with local law enforcement and improving anti-poaching measures. The establishment as a national park caused issues with the local farmers. The Minister of the Environment, Fisheries and Sustainable Development agreed to support the residents with access to water as well as other measures to sustain the economy.

References

{{coord missing, Chad Protected areas established in 1965 National parks of Chad African Parks (organisation)