Greenpeace Africa launches campaign to protect Congo Basin forests from extractive projects

Greenpeace Africa has launched a campaign calling for greater protection of the Congo Basin’s forests, peatlands and communities as mining, logging, oil and gas activities continue to expand across the region.

The environmental organisation says the Kivu-Kinshasa Green Corridor, announced in 2025 as a major conservation initiative, is already facing significant pressure from extractive industries.

According to Greenpeace Africa, nearly three-quarters of the corridor had been allocated to oil companies, while new findings indicate that mining permits are now covering much of the remaining area.

The organisation says this could place about 6.5 million hectares of critical peatlands and 1 million hectares of community forests at risk of land grabbing and irreversible environmental damage.

Greenpeace Africa points to the situation in Moanda in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as an example of the impact that extractive activities can have on sensitive ecosystems. The organisation says the country’s mangrove forests have been affected by toxic oil pollution linked to oil extraction by Perenco DRC.

It also warns that similar pressures are being felt elsewhere in the Congo Basin.

In Cameroon, Greenpeace Africa says mining activity has increased by 5,000% over the past 14 years. The organisation also says 68,385 hectares of the Ebo Forest are being considered for logging.

The Ebo Forest is an important wildlife habitat and the ancestral home of the Banen people.

Greenpeace Africa argues that protecting intact forests is essential not only for biodiversity and the climate, but also for communities that depend on these ecosystems.

“We believe that the rights of communities are best served by intact forests, which sustain millions of them,” the organisation said.

As part of its campaign, Greenpeace Africa is calling on the Congo Basin Climate Commission to take stronger measures to limit extractive activities in protected areas.

Among its demands is a freeze on new mining projects in protected areas of the Congo Basin. The organisation says this should be the first step towards limiting further extractive expansion and protecting communities and ecosystems.

It is also calling for the Kivu-Kinshasa Green Corridor to be established as a no-go zone for destructive and extractive projects through a moratorium on new developments.

Greenpeace Africa further wants governments to stop the expansion of extractive projects in and around protected areas across the Congo Basin, including the Ebo Forest, the Mangrove Marine Park and other critical ecosystems.

The call comes as governments and companies face growing pressure to secure minerals needed for the global energy transition.

The DRC has already taken action against mining operations near one of its protected areas.

Earlier last month, the country’s Minister of Mines suspended mining activities in areas adjacent to Maiko National Park after authorities found that Stone Mining SARLU and Xin Hong Kuan Ye SARL, holders of Exploration Permits No. 16591 and No. 16594 respectively, were engaged in unlawful activities.

The permits did not authorise the companies to conduct mining activities in the areas concerned.

For Greenpeace Africa, the development highlights the need for stronger controls over extractive activities in and around protected forests.

The organisation says increasing global demand for critical minerals should not come at the expense of forests, biodiversity or communities.

With the Congo Basin playing a critical role in regulating the climate and supporting millions of people, Greenpeace Africa is urging governments to put stronger environmental protections in place before approving further extractive projects.