Our charity was established in 1996 when it was known as Cameroon Wildlife Aid Fund (or CWAF). Its primary objective was to improve living conditions for primates housed at Mvog Betsi Zoo in Yaounde, Cameroon. During 12 years of operation, CWAF expanded its mission significantly to provide sanctuary for wild orphans of the illegal bushmeat and pet trades in Cameroon.

CWAF meant a lot over the years to our dedicated staff and supporters all over the world, but we took the decision in 2009 to move forward with a name that reflected our commitment to great ape protection and aligned us more closely with our mission and its goals:

  • Ape...to provide sanctuary for individual, endangered primates orphaned by the illegal bushmeat and pet trades

  • Action...to actively rescue orphaned primates, providing rehabilitation and long term care in a protected environment.

  • Africa...to work closely with the Cameroonian people to protect their natural heritage through education and social support.

In the 10 years since this change took place, Ape Action Africa and the sanctuary we run at Mefou has become one of the largest wildlife rescue operations in Africa and we are very proud of the rescue and rehabilitation work we do and the outreach programs we run. Whilst the threats to primates remain a very present issue in Cameroon, we are very positive about the future and look forward to the new opportunities we have to increase awareness about the plight of great apes and raise vital funds for our long term work in Cameroon.

If you would like to learn some more about the people who run our organisation, please take a look at 'Our people' page.

We have a very dedicated and generous number of followers and supporters from all over the world, who help make sure we continue to do our essential work. Whilst there are too many to name individually on this site, we would like to thank some of our most generous and long-term supporters here.

Mefou primate sanctuary