WDPCA: Protected and Conserved Areas in Democratic Republic of the Congo

This geospatial dataset documents terrestrial and marine protected areas and Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) within the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Managed by the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) in collaboration with the IUCN, the data is updated monthly to support international biodiversity reporting and policy decisions.

Use Cases

• Spatial overlap analysis with project boundaries to identify biodiversity risks using the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT)
• Tracking progress toward Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework using site boundaries
• Integration with Global Forest Watch monitoring systems to manage landscape-level conservation

Strengths

• Official UN-backed data source managed by UNEP-WCMC and IUCN
• Available in multiple GIS-ready formats including GeoJSON, GeoPackage, and GeoService
• Monthly update frequency ensures current status of conservation zones

Limitations

• Data accuracy is dependent on the reporting quality of national governments and stakeholders
• Specific attribute schema and column names are not detailed in the provided metadata

Provenance

Source

The UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC)

Collection Method

Compiled from government reports and stakeholder contributions in collaboration with IUCN

Freshness

Updated monthly; last record dated March 2026.

Geography

Democratic Republic of the Congo