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The results of our 3 year Conservation Incentive Payments (CIP) trial are out.
KopeLion and the TAWIRI lion research project presented them to stakeholders, including community leaders, NCAA, TANAPA, TAWIRI, MNRT, and tourism operators, in Karatu, and to present them to all the villages that participated.
Largely supported by The Lion Recovery Fund and others, we additionally thank the 6 villages who participated, the NCA Authority, and KopeLion staff, Ingela Jansson, Adam Pekor, William Ole Seki and Ololotu Munka who poured their hearts and time into the project.
95% of respondents reported that they were satisfied with the CIP program, 97% reported that they had a more positive view of lions as a result of the CIP program, and 99% reported that they would like the CIP program to continue in their village.
Human-lion coexistence was greatest where the CIP program was piloted – during the three years of the pilot, there was not a single retaliatory lion killing, hunt, or attempted hunt in the CIP villages, despite 29 such events in KopeLion’s wider area of operations’.
Funding for education elevated the CIP programme, – a conservation intervention can only help promote coexistence if people are aware of the benefits they are earning from wildlife. Here, awareness of the CIP program was extremely high, with over 90% of respondents from CIP villages reporting having heard of the program or the fact that their village was earning money from the lions on their land. Anecdotally, we noticed a substantial uptick in both awareness of and enthusiasm for the program once the participating villages began using their earnings to support students to attend secondary school.
Download the CIP Final Report
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Kope Lion
KopeLion Inc. (short for Korongoro People’s Lion Initiative) is a non-profit NGO registered in USA and in Tanzania. Our mission is to foster human-lion coexistence through participatory research and sustainable community-based conservation.
Volume up to hear her breathing.![]()
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The KopeLion team and our veterinarian are closely monitoring her breathing rate throughout the immobilisation procedure to ensure she remains stable and safe.
On Valentine’s Day, we replaced lioness Nang’ida’s collar to retrieve valuable activity level data collected since July 2023.![]()
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The previous collar recorded movement patterns linked to specific behaviours, helping us better understand how lions use the landscape and respond to environmental change. It has now been replaced with a standard GPS collar so monitoring can continue.![]()
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Nang’ida separated from the Twin Hills Sister pride in 2024 with her two male cubs, then around 1.5 years old. This followed the takeover of the area by the Team Tano male coalition. She successfully kept both cubs safe, and they were last observed in January 2026.![]()
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She remains alone.![]()
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Within 24 hours of collaring, Nang’ida hunted a wildebeest and its calf on her own.![]()
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Her story continues to unfold, and we will continue to follow her movements closely.![]()
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Thanks to the wonderful Dr Wambura for his assistance in this procedure and to Ndutu Safari Lodge for hosting us.![]()
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📷: Bobby-Jo Photography
Much needed rain in Ndutu.![]()
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Collared lioness Nemambai and her cubs taking a quiet moment between showers.![]()
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After weeks of dust and heat, the grass is finally greening and Ndutu feels alive again.![]()
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Small moments like this remind us how closely their lives are tied to the seasons.![]()
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🎥: Bobby-Jo Photography
