JUBA — At least 50 wildlife rangers have graduated from an intensive 2-month training program aimed at strengthening efforts to combat poaching and protect wildlife in South Sudan’s Badingilo National Park.
The third batch of rangers completed a two-month training program covering wildlife management, law enforcement, tactical skills, weapons handling, discipline, and operational readiness.
Speaking during the graduation ceremony at Badingilo National Park on Tuesday, Gen. Khamis Adiang, Director General of Wildlife Service at the Ministry of Wildlife Conservation and Tourism, said the newly trained rangers would bolster ongoing efforts to protect South Sudan’s wildlife and natural resources.
“I think we need competent people who can be deployed in the field and do the job. Maybe later, we will look into this issue of gender balance,” Adiang said.
Adiang said the graduates would be deployed to the field to protect wildlife and safeguard the country’s wild animals.
“They (women) will come and work in the offices, computers, and all these types of things. But for now, we need people to be on the field, chasing poachers. So these things will come.”
He called for joint efforts to conserve and protect wildlife across the country.
“The future of wildlife in South Sudan is determined by you and me. I mean if we come together. Because the responsibility of conservation is a collective responsibility of everybody in South Sudan. It is not only wildlife.”
For his part, John Vorgal, Badingilo Park manager, urged the newly graduated wildlife rangers to carry out their duties with integrity, discipline, and professionalism.
“We expect you to be courageous when courage is required but also restrained when restraint is required. We expect you to protect wildlife,” John said.
“But we also expect you to respect human rights and uphold the law. And above all, we expect you to serve with integrity.”
John urged the rangers to combat the commercial bush-meat trade and wildlife trafficking.
“It’s an enormous responsibility that you’ve been entrusted with. There are serious threats to the landscape, the commercial bush meat trade, and wildlife trafficking, so therefore there’s a great deal of work ahead of us.”
William O. Konga, a newly graduated ranger, said he joined the Wildlife Service to help curb rampant poaching and protect wildlife in the Lafon community.
“I will negotiate with them by telling them to not kill a lot. But if you want just food, one at a time. Not daily or not even in a month. So, if you want to eat, just kill the one that satisfies you. Not the large number,” William said.
Badingilo National Park is one of South Sudan’s most important wildlife conservation areas, located in Central Equatoria State, east of Juba.
It forms part of the country’s wider network of protected areas and is known for its extensive grasslands and diverse wildlife.
The park is particularly famous for the white-eared kob, which undertakes one of Africa’s largest mammal migrations.
Badingilo also supports other wildlife species, including elephants, giraffes, antelopes, and buffalo, among others.
Its large open landscapes provide important habitats for wildlife and make the park a key area for conservation and potential tourism development.
