The Duke of Sussex’s conservation charity has been removed from its role managing protected parks in Chad after the government accused it of arrogance, serious financial misconduct and failing to protect wildlife.

In a statement announcing the end of the 15-year partnership “with immediate effect”, Hassan Bakhit Djamous, Chad’s environment minister, said the charity, African Parks, had displayed a “recurring, indelicate and disrespectful attitude towards the government”.

Over four pages, the ministry alleged grave breaches of contract and financial irregularities, accusing the charity of keeping unaudited accounts and not being transparent over how funds were raised, managed and spent.

It alleged that the charity illegally collected tourism revenues, used tax-haven bank accounts in the Isle of Man and transferred capital and foreign exchange abroad “to the detriment of Chad and in flagrant violation of national banking and tax regulations”. The ministry also claimed African Parks had prioritised tourism over conservation, banned Chadians from certain sites and failed to invest in essential equipment for rangers as poaching surged across its parks.

Prince Harry became president of the organisation in 2017 before being promoted to the governing board of directors in 2023, assuming greater responsibility for management and strategy.

The statement from Chad represents a rare and public rebuke for the charity, which manages 24 protected areas across 13 African countries with the backing of billionaire philanthropists including Howard Buffett and Bill Ackman. Its work in Chad, focused on anti-poaching efforts and the restoration of elephant populations at the Ennedi Natural and Cultural Reserve and the Greater Zakouma Ecosystem, was directly supported by funds from US government agencies and the Rob Walton Foundation, financed by the former Walmart chairman.

An eroded sandstone cave in the Ennedi Natural And Cultural Reserve, a Unesco world heritage site in the Chadian Sahara

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It is a further dent to the reputation of African Parks, which has been criticised for adopting a militarised approach to conservation and has had cases of abuse confirmed against its staff. Earlier this year an independent investigation found that employees of the charity in the Republic of the Congo had beaten, raped and tortured indigenous Baka people. While African Parks acknowledged “serious abuses”, it declined to publish the full report, prompting accusations of secrecy and impunity.

In response to the statement from Chad, the charity said it had “initiated discussions to understand the reasons and to ensure the conservation and social gains achieved over the past 15 years are sustained,” adding that it was committed to “listening and learning” from the concerns raised. Africa Parks said its management agreement with Chad for the Ennedi Natural and Cultural Reserve had been renewed in April. According to its reports, the elephant population at Zakouma National Park increased from 450 in 2010, when it took over management of the site, to more than 550 by 2019.

The loss of two reserves in Chad sets back the charity’s ambitions to manage 30 parks by 2030. Its billionaire backers provide the $100 million annual budget.

The Ennedi Natural and Cultural Reserve is one of 24 protected areas managed by African Parks

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Harry, 41, has been contacted for comment. It is the prince’s only official role in Africa because he stepped down this year from Sentebale, the charity he co-founded in Lesotho, over a dispute with the board of trustees chairwoman. Harry and others were later criticised by the Charity Commission for letting a “damaging” boardroom battle play out in the public eye and harm the reputation of a good cause.

Founded in 2000, African Parks established a hard-nosed reputation by going into seriously degraded places armed with the right to hire and fire from governments, which retained broad authority but respected a clear separation of roles.

The group assumes day-to-day management of countries’ wildlife areas, seeking more efficiency and accountability in the campaign to protect flora and fauna from poaching and habitat depletion. Many partner nations struggle to run parks on their own, challenged by poverty, corruption and conflict.

A book about the charity that was published last year, Entrepreneurs in the Wild, painted a troubling picture of an ambitious foreign-funded organisation deploying well-armed rangers, with the agreement of African governments, to forcibly disrupt the traditions of local communities in an area comparable to the size of Britain.

After the prince’s acrimonious split from the royal family, senior figures at African Parks debated whether he remained a useful connection or brought unwanted attention to the charity’s operations and financing, according to the book.

In his autobiography, Spare, Harry described a rivalry with his brother, Prince William, over their work in Africa and their differing attitudes to conservation.

African Parks said: “African Parks confirms that on October 6, 2025, it received official correspondence from Mr Hassan Bakhit Djamous, the minister of environment, fisheries and sustainable development of Chad, informing the organisation of the government of Chad’s unilateral decision to terminate the two management mandates it has with African Parks. These mandates relate to the Ennedi Natural and Cultural Reserve and the Greater Zakouma Ecosystem, which includes Zakouma National Park and Siniaka-Minia National Park.

“African Parks has initiated discussions with the ministry to understand the government’s position and to explore the best possible way forward in support of the continued protection of these critical conservation landscapes, as well as to ensure that the significant conservation and social gains achieved over the past 15 years are sustained.

“African Parks will continue to keep its partners and stakeholders informed, as further clarity is obtained.”