Remote Sepik villages prepare for annual Sepik Crocodile Festival, August 11-12, Ambunti, East Sepik province (please click on images to enlarge)

The central role of the crocodile in the lives of the people of the Sepik will be celebrated at the third Sepik Crocodile Festival, in remote Ambunti, from August 11-12.

Dancers and traditional performers from communities across the region will meet in Ambunti for two days of celebrations. The festival aims to protect the crocodiles and their habitat.

Background:

Communities are also spreading the message that they must start working now to keep the Sepik pristine and safeguard it for the future.

The Sepik Crocodile Festival, to be held on August 11-12 in Ambunti, is an opportunity to link culture with conservation.

This year’s event theme “Kirapim wok bilong turis wantaim bus, wara na pasin tumbuna bilong Sepik,” is a call to recognise and promote ecotourism through conserving natural habitats and encouraging sustainable use of the river.

The mighty Sepik River is still one of the most pristine rivers in Asia Pacific, but it is faces threats from development and climate change.

Through a partnership programme with community-based organisations such as the Sepik Wetland Management Initiative and Help Resources - the Worldwide Fund for Nature, the PNG Department of Environment and Conservation and local-level governments are working with local clans and villages to build a secure future for the Sepik.

The unique cultures of the Sepik are world-renowned. The river is essential for these local communities; it defines their spiritual and physical world. The river is the basis of myths and legends as well as providing food, shelter, building and carving materials, and medicines.

As part of its support for the festival, WWF will highlight the importance of freshwater biodiversity. It is important to protect and restore freshwater and forest ecosystems to meet future challenges from climate change and to ensure people have access to safe water and food sources.

WWF's work in the Sepik basin includes helping communities build and strengthen ecotourism as a source of alternative income.

WWF has been working in PNG since 1995. It focuses on linking community action, science and effective policy to ensure the protection and sustainable use of forests, freshwater and marine resources across the island of New Guinea.

 

For further information, contact:

Lydia Kaia

Communications Officer

Tel:     + 675 320 0149

Email:             lkaia@wwfpacific.org.pg