4th Congress of the African Primatological Society (APS 2026)
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Organized by the Red Colobus Conservation Network (RCCN) and the Flor' Foundation, facilitated by Florence Aghomo.
📅 September 10-11, 2026 — Rooms 5
See the full program for more details.
📌 General Information
The African Primatological Society (APS) will hold its fourth congress in Yaoundé, Cameroon, from September 8-11, 2026. We are very proud and excited to announce this 2026 APS congress for the advancement of African primate research and conservation.
📊 Current Status: Recent assessments have highlighted more clearly than ever the severe crisis facing African primates, warning of an imminent and potentially irreversible loss of the continent's extraordinary primate biodiversity unless urgent and tangible actions are taken to halt and reverse current trends.
The Primate Specialist Group (PSG) currently recognizes 107 African primate species, encompassing 201 taxa across 26 genera and four families. Alarmingly, 104 taxa, representing more than half (51.7%) of African primate species, are threatened with extinction:
18
Critically Endangered
48
Endangered
38
Vulnerable
It is becoming increasingly clear that enhanced engagement from all stakeholders — national governments, international organizations, donor agencies, research institutions, and local and indigenous communities — is needed to reassess their levels of commitment, participation, and intervention strategies to save African primate diversity. It is crucial that Africans themselves are better positioned to lead conservation efforts if sustainable outcomes are to be achieved.
📜 APS Congress History
Recognizing the urgent need for African leadership in primatology, a series of preparatory meetings between 2012 and 2016 led to the official establishment of the African Primatological Society (APS) in April 2016.
- 🏆 1st Congress (2017) — Bingerville, Côte d'Ivoire
The African Primatological Society (APS) was officially launched during an inaugural congress hosted by the Centre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques en Côte d'Ivoire (CSRS) and Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny in Bingerville, Côte d'Ivoire, from July 24-27, 2017. The congress brought together 150 primatologists from 22 African countries as well as several dozen from other countries worldwide. - 🏆 2nd Congress (2019) — Entebbe, Uganda
The second APS congress was held in Entebbe, Uganda, from September 3-5, 2019, hosted by Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH). It brought together more than 300 primate experts from 24 African countries around the theme: Challenges and Opportunities for Primate Conservation in Africa. - 🏆 3rd Congress (2024) — Potchefstroom, South Africa
The third congress was held at North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa, from September 25-28, 2024, under the theme: Integrating Research and Conservation in African Primates. It gathered approximately 150 African primatologists. - 🏆 4th Congress (2026) — Yaoundé, Cameroon
The fourth congress, scheduled for September 2026 in Yaoundé, Cameroon, will bring together approximately 250 African primatologists, non-African researchers and conservationists working on African primates, as well as other interested parties. It will be held jointly with a Meeting of the Parties to the Gorilla Agreement under the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS/GRASP). The Asian Society of Primatology will participate as a guest of honour.
🎯 Congress Objective
The overall objective of the 4th Congress of the African Primatological Society (APS) is to consolidate APS's position as a reference platform for sharing knowledge and experiences among researchers, conservationists, education practitioners, primate caretakers, funders, and policymakers across the African continent. By bringing together diverse stakeholders, the congress aims to mobilize collective action for the effective conservation of African primates.
📋 Specific Objectives
- Enhance understanding of the advances, constraints, and future prospects of primatology in different regions of Africa (West, East, North, Southern, Central Africa, and Madagascar), with a focus on the implementation and evaluation of existing primate species conservation action plans;
- Disseminate results of selected projects covering various aspects of African primatology, including ecology, ethology, systematics, taxonomy, distribution, epidemiology, anthropology, human-primate interactions, conflicts, education, conservation, diseases, One Health approaches, and tourism;
- Consolidate the organizational framework of the society and make necessary adjustments for its effective functioning, in collaboration with sister societies in Europe, Latin America, Asia, and the International Primatological Society (IPS).
🎨 Congress Theme
The general theme of the 4th Congress of the African Primatological Society (APS) will be:
"Ethical Primatology: Recognizing the Role of Local and Indigenous Communities in African Primate Conservation."
Selected speakers will address this theme through their work, with particular emphasis on community engagement as a cornerstone for advancing primate conservation and human well-being.
📅 Congress Activities
The program will be diverse and inclusive, designed to foster knowledge exchange, collaboration, and capacity building:
- Plenary Lectures — Delivered by leading African and international experts;
- Oral Presentations and Poster Sessions — Showcasing cutting-edge research and conservation projects;
- Panels — Including grassroots community groups to ensure local perspectives are considered;
- Symposia — Thematic sessions addressing urgent conservation challenges;
- General Assembly — With the installation of the new APS executive bureau to strengthen governance and leadership;
- Post-Congress Training Sessions — Focused on skill development for young researchers and conservation practitioners;
- Field Excursion — Offering participants a firsthand experience of primate habitats in Cameroon and conservation challenges.
🌍 Relevance to Primate Conservation Objectives
The African Primatological Society (APS) affirms that the proposed congress is directly relevant to the urgent need to protect critically endangered primates and preserve primate diversity in their natural habitats. APS's mission is to promote primate research and improve conservation outcomes by encouraging greater involvement and enhanced leadership of African primatologists.
Key Figures:
- 🌍 Continental Africa: of 201 assessed taxa, 52% are threatened with extinction;
- 🇲🇬 Madagascar: of 113 assessed taxa, 94% are threatened, making the island one of the most critical hotspots for primate conservation globally.
Despite multiple and ongoing conservation efforts, many African primate species continue to face existential threats. APS believes that without increased involvement and leadership from stakeholders living and working on the African continent, the impact of conservation initiatives will remain limited.
📍 Congress Venue
The 4th Congress of the African Primatological Society (APS) will be held at the Yaoundé Congress Palace, in the political capital of Cameroon. The city is relatively easily accessible by air from most parts of Africa and Europe, with direct international flights to Nsimalen International Airport, located about an hour's drive from the city center.
The congress will be organized by the Cameroon Biodiversity Association and the Cameroon Primatological Society, ensuring strong local leadership and solid organizational support.
Cameroon is home to approximately 40 primate species and is widely recognized as one of the most important countries in Africa for primate diversity and conservation. The Sanaga River constitutes a key biogeographical barrier between chimpanzee subspecies, gorillas, and other primates, highlighting the country's unique role in primate diversity and conservation.
