The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme (EWCP) was founded in 1995 by Claudio Sillero, Edriss Ebu, and Karen Laurenson, building on research undertaken on the previous decade and a realisation that these animals were so rare and threatened that they required a special programme to secure their persistence.
Today EWCP is recognised as a world leader in the field of carnivore conservation.
The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme (EWCP)is a partnership between the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA), and Dinkenesh Ethiopia Conservation Charity Organization, which provides an ideal platform from which to address wildlife conservation.
Our mission is to secure viable and ecologically functioning Ethiopian wolf populations and habitats, and to emphasise its role as a flagship for the conservation and sustainable use of the Afroalpine ecosystem, on which present and future generations of Ethiopians also depend. The goals in the National Action Plan remain our guide and motivation:
All existing Ethiopian wolf populations secured, not at risk of immediate extinction, with genetic diversity maintained, and the number of wolf packs increased
Ethiopian wolves actively managed as a metapopulation, including wherever possible the restoration of wolves to available habitat within their historical range
All stakeholders, especially decision makers at the national, regional, and local levels, involved in, and committed to conserving wolves and their habitat
The EWCP operates under the auspices of the IUCN SSC Canid Specialist Group, and additionally collaborates with the University of Addis Ababa, Bahir Dar, CVMA, Debre Zeit, Gonder, Jimma, and Wondo Genet in Ethiopia, and Universities of Glasgow, Leiden, Rollins College, Royal Veterinary College, ZSL, CEES, South Bohemia, the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, ABCE, EBI, IBREAM, and Animal and Plant Health Agency (UK), among others.
EWCP operates in Ethiopia under Memoranda of Understanding agreements between the WildCRU and the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA) at a federal level, and the Oromia Forest and Wildlife Enterprise (OFWE) and Amhara Culture, Tourism and Parks Development Bureau at a regional level. In addition, EWCP works closely with the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS).
EWCP has long-established excellent working relationships with all these organisations. In addition, the Programme seeks the support and cooperation of local authorities for all field activities in all areas.
EWCP is been chiefly funded via our partnership the Wildlife Conservation Network (since 2002), as well as many generous grants, donors, and philanthropists.
Together we can do this by strengthening our core projects: Monitoring & Research, One Health, Living with Wolves, Biodiversity Friendly Futures & Conservation Translocations
Together we can save Ethiopian wolves from extinction.
