UNESCO has inscribed South Sudan’s Boma-Badingilo Migratory Landscape as the country’s first World Heritage Site, recognizing the 11-million-hectare region that hosts the largest overland mammal migration on Earth. More than six million antelope—including white-eared kob, tiang, Mongalla gazelle, and Bohor reedbuck—travel across the ecosystem annually, alongside elephants, lions, cheetahs, and other iconic wildlife. However, UNESCO simultaneously placed the site on its List of World Heritage in Danger because of armed conflict, commercial poaching, infrastructure expansion, and potential extractive industries. Conservation experts say the designation will attract international support but stress that stronger legal protections and improved management are urgently needed to ensure the ecosystem’s long-term survival.
Daily Maverick