71.9% of the country is still forested, with 11.1% of the country protected in national parks and a further 16% in other forms of protection, giving a total of 27% of the country protected. While this is very impressive, it still sugests 44.9% of the country is currently covered by forest, but has little or no protection. The country has a population of 2.1 million, but the country is listed as 173rd in the world in terms of GDP, with an average salary of $7120. As such, the government quite rightly, is trying to increase salaries in the country, however, it seems quite likely that this can be done without removing further rainforest.

In 2019 52,000 people visited the country, but then in 2005 just 5000 visited. Even if this figure increased by another factor of 10, that would only by 10,000 people visiting a week of the year, or around 700 per national park (this does not count the reserves that also exist around the country.

Should we want these countries in Africa to retain their rainforest (and thereby help with climate change) we need to make sure that that is well worth their while. Tourism can provide good incomes for many people living around a reserve or national park. There is also a large archipelago off the coast, containing 88 islands with 170 species of fish. Boasting dolphins, bluespotted ribbontail rays, guitarfish and a wealth of sharks including grey reefs, tigers and hammerheads, the waters surrounding the archipelago are a a destination of their own, when it comes to wildlife watching. The lagoons covered with masses of sea grass house the headline act: manatees, now sadly endangered due to overfishing. The warm, shallow waters of the Bissagos Islands are home to one of the largest “sea cow” colonies in the world, giving visitors a rare opportunity to view these precious mammals. If we want animals like the African manatee to survive and thrive in the country, they must be seen as something worth preserving.