Reflecting the great diversity of the African forest landscapes

WFSE Side Event at XIV World Forestry Congress in Durban discussed Opportunities and challenges for harnessing local forest management to improve rural livelihoods in Africa.

The presentations highlighted common elements and draw some general conclusions on the opportunities to improve rural incomes from forests and trees, and identified challenges that are shared across the continent.

The Chair of the WFSE Steering Committee Glenn Galloway moderated the event. The program included six presentations and discussion.
 

Presentations:

• Eshetu Yirdaw, University of Helsinki, Finland: Rehabilitation of degraded forest and woodland ecosystems for livelihoods and ecosystem services in Ethiopia
• Fernanda Tomaselli, University of British Columbia, Canada: Opportunities and challenges for small forest-based enterprises in the Gambia
• Almeida Sitoe, Eduardo Mondlane University, Mozambique: Community rights and participation in the face of new global interests in forests and lands: the case of Mozambique
• Guillaume Lescuyer, CIFOR, Indonesia: How domestic timber markets contribute to local livelihoods: Insights from Central Africa?
• Pia Katila, Natural Resources Institute Finland: Wider view on opportunities and challenges to enhance forest and tree incomes and the realities in Africa
• Glenn Galloway, University of Florida, US: Synthesis and implications for research and development efforts