Making Sub-Saharan African Forests Work for People and Nature

Forests in Sub-saharan Africa are crucial to the well-being of hundreds of thousands of people who rely on their services for daily support. They are also vital carbon sinks and biodiversity zones, and must therefore be a priority to the international community as it strategizes about climate change and other global challenges. How can we make sub-Saharan African forests work for people and nature? This question is at the heart of a new policy document launched at the World Agroforestry Congress on Wednesday.

“Making sub-Saharan African Forests Work for People and Nature”(PDF) was developed jointly by the Special Project on World Forests, Society and Environment (WFSE) of the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO), World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR). Its key messages can help guide Africa forward in harnessing its rich natural resources for economic development and participation in global markets and mechanisms.

The brief focuses on three major drivers of change which will require new approaches to forest and landscape management in sub-Saharan Africa: Climate change adaptation and mitigation; emerging markets for environmental services; and markets for biofuels.

In a discussion moderated by World Agroforestry Centre Deputy Director General Tony Simons, expert panelists were invited to react to the brief’s key messages and give their insight on the most urgent, and realistic, ways forward.

Professor Risto Seppälä, from the Finnish Forest Research Institute (Metla), emphasized that African countries have much to offer to the global communities, and that it must take advantage of emerging markets for carbon and other commodities, to move forward. This message must be targeted to policy-makers outside the forest sector, to have a real effect. However, he warned that weak governance was still an important challenge.

Professor Godwin Kowero, Executive Secretary of the African Forest Forum, said Africa’s forested lands outside of the tropical rainforest have been overlooked in global climate discussions. He stressed that Africa has diverse forest types and conditions, and that all of these areas have a role to play in climate change mitigation, as well as generate benefits for the people living there. The continent lacks consensus on the best way forward to reduce emissions from forests and other land use.

Dr. Denis Sonwa, from the Centre for International Forestry Research in Cameroon said that the sociopolitical contexts in forest areas must be taken into consideration in addition to the ecological differences. Central African countries which have experienced violent conflict, for example, will have different forest governance priorities than peaceful areas. As well, forest issues need to be built into a country’s development framework in order to properly address the multiple ways that forests influence peoples’ livelihoods.

The lively question and answer session underlined the need for a multisectoral approach in dealing with forests, land use and climate change. This means ministries of Environment, Forestry and Agriculture working together towards common objectives. Another point related to the need to make Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) “green” for local communities. The panelists also agreed that Africa’s governments need to work on their own definitions of ‘forests’ if they want to link into global processes. As well, existing river basin organizations in Africa could provide the basis for a comprehensive and transboundary adaptation effort. Lastly, Professor Kowero underlined the need for better energy