Zakouma National Park is a national park

National park

A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...

, located between Sarh

Sarh

Sarh is the third largest city in Chad, after N'Djamena and Moundou. It is the capital of Moyen-Chari region and the department of Barh Köh. It lies 350 miles south-east of the capital Ndjamena on the Chari River...

 and Am Timan

Am Timan

Am Timan is a city in Chad and is the capital of the region of Salamat. Am Timan means "mother of twins," although the reason for the name is not known...

, in the south of Chad

Chad

Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...

. Created in 1963, it was Chad's first national park, and has an area of almost 3000 square kilometres (1,158.3 sq mi). It is entirely surrounded by the Bahr Salamat Faunal Reserve

Bahr Salamat Faunal Reserve

Bahr Salamat Faunal Reserve is a conservation area in Chad. It is named after the Bahr Salamat River which flows through it...

.

Zakouma was neglected during the period of civil conflict, but a restoration programme, supported by the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

, began in 1989 and is continuing in 2006. The area in and near the Park has seen significant reduction in certain wildlife species in recent decades.