The Pan-African Ornithological Congress (PAOC) is a regular conference on African ornithology, usually held every four years at an African venue. Its geographic scope is: "...the entire continent from North Africa to the Cape of Good Hope, and east to the Suez Canal and Red Sea; the Cape Verde, Madeira and Canary islands; also isolated Atlantic Oceanic islands nearer Africa than South America, Antarctic islands south of Africa and the African-facing coast of Antarctica, the Seychelles, Comoros, Socotra, Mascarene Islands and Madagascar. All continental shelf islands (e.g. Zanzibar, Fernando Po — now Bioko) are considered areas of interest, as are areas of provenance and intervening routes of migratory birds that visit Africa." Its aims and purposes are, with regard to African birds, to: Further their study Promote their preservation as an integral part of African heritage Foster their appreciation and discussion in relation to man, and Disseminate information about them through international meetings (Congresses) and publications (Proceedings) The constitution also states: "Of vital importance to this scientific and educational organisation is the opportunity for free and open discussion of African avian biology, birds and their relations to man, and man’s effects on bird populations." History The concept of holding a conference focussing on the African avifauna originated in an invitation by Cecily Niven, then President of the South African Ornithological Society (SAOS, later BirdLife South Africa), to the 11th International Ornithological Congress (IOC), in Basel, Switzerland in 1954, to hold the 12th IOC in South Africa. Although the offer was not taken up at the time, it stimulated discussion about holding an independent conference on African birds, leading to the first PAOC in Livingstone, Northern Rhodesia, in 1957. The first three congresses took place in southern Africa under the auspices of the SAOS, with the third (in Kruger National Park) largely organised by the Percy FitzPatrick Institute. Because of the political atmosphere pertaining to apartheid in South Africa at the time, no indigenous Africans participated in those meetings. At the 16th IOC in Canberra, Australia, in 1974, several ornithologists suggested that the next PAOC should be held outside southern Africa, in order to give it a truly Pan-African dimension, and to encourage greater participation from other parts of Africa, including by indigenous Africans. Although PAOC 4 was due to be held in Kenya, the political atmosphere meant that many ornithologists from southern Africa would be unable to attend. Consequently, the