A Pan-African Conservation Trust also known as A-PACT is the conservation fund mooted to address funding deficits for conservation on the African continent.

The conservation funding plan is the main item on the agenda of the July 18-23, 2022 Africa Protected Areas Congress in Kigali, Rwanda.

Conservationists pushing for the establishment of the fund say at least $200 billion is needed to meet routine costs of conserving estates managed by state agencies, indigenous peoples, local communities or private individuals across the 54 countries.

But what needs to be done for the fund to take shape? How will the money be mobilised? Who will manage the trust, and what are the modalities of funds disbursement? 

Frederick Kumah, Vice President of Kenya-based African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), the organization spearheading the initiative, answers these and other questions.