Why he gave his heart to the gorillas

At 43, Assembe Dieudonné’s love affair for gorillas has inspired many to adoration. Born in Campo in the South Region of Cameroon, Assembe has been working for a WWF-initiated gorilla habituation project since 2011. “I have given my heart to the gorillas,” he says. “I have sacrificed the comfort of the city and the bond of my family, turned down better paid job offers just to ensure that the gorillas are protected,” he adds.

 A Bagyeli, one of the five groups of indigenous peoples in Cameroon, Assembe’s love for gorillas seems congenital. “In 1988, my father was already doing this work. He was fun of animals and it made a lot of difference. That is why I immediately accepted WWF’s offer to join the habituation team,” he states.

 Assembe is part of a team that spends 15 days each month tracking a group of 32 gorillas. “We trail the gorillas from dawn to dusk and continue from where we left off the previous day,” he explains. In silence they keep to the fresh traces of the gorilla right to their nests. The team is even quieter when they sense the physical presence of the gorillas. “Usually the male silverback charges towards us but we stay put because he cannot harm us.”
 
Since 2013, Assembe has seen the distance between the gorillas and the habituation team narrow. “Before it was difficult to come 50 meters away from the gorillas without them fleeing but today we are closer to them by almost 10 meters and they are not scared,” he says. “Previously, we walked at least 10 km to meet them. Today we trek a maximum of 2 km.”
 
Gorillas have charged at Assembe several times. There was a day a gorilla waddled passed within 2 meters from him. “It made a sudden turn in front of me, and swung its arm at me but I stood still and quiet. Under these conditions, you must not attempt to flee. If you do, the gorilla will attack you,” he says.
 
According to Assembe, more Bagyelis would like to join him in the habituation project but “they have trouble leaving their wives back home to spend 20 days in the forest,” he says. Initially the team spent 20 days but this was later reduced to 15 to allow some of them to spend time with their families.
 
“Seeing these animals pleases me a lot. My biggest wish is the success of this project. I do not work for myself, I work for my village and I will encourage my children to do same,” he declared.
Initiated by WWF in 2008, the gorilla habituation project currently going on in Campo Ma’an is expected to boost tourism and generate income for local communities and the state of Cameroon.