Sierra Leone’s coastal communities, faced with rising sea levels and increasingly violent storms, are receiving crucial support with the announcement on 6 March 2024 of a $26.8 million initiative. The Green Climate Fund (GCF), in collaboration with the government of Sierra Leone and the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Save the Children, is launching an ambitious project to build resilience to the devastating effects of climate change along the coast of this West African country.
Toute l'actu sur la protection de l'environnement
Sierra Leone’s coastal communities, faced with rising sea levels and increasingly violent storms, are receiving crucial support with the announcement on 6 March 2024 of a $26.8 million initiative. The Green Climate Fund (GCF), in collaboration with the government of Sierra Leone and the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Save the Children, is launching an ambitious project to build resilience to the devastating effects of climate change along the coast of this West African country.
The Sierra Leone Coastal Resilience Project aims to enable communities to better plan for and adapt to the impacts of climate change, while improving their livelihoods. With the direct aim of reaching 260,000 people and benefiting a further million, the initiative will involve the conservation and restoration of 1,500 hectares of mangrove ecosystems essential for coastal protection and marine biodiversity.
Working with local partners, this five-year project will focus on improving food and water security, supporting education, enhancing social inclusion, and improving the health and well-being of coastal populations. Particular attention will be paid to women, young people and children, who are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Efforts will include building resilience in more than 70 schools, as well as improving education on climate change.
The $26.8 million funding comes primarily from a $25 million grant from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), supplemented by contributions from Sierra Leone’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the law firm Clifford Chance and Jersey Overseas Aid. This project, Save the Children’s fourth with the GCF and the first in sub-Saharan Africa, reflects the commitment of international organisations to supporting the most vulnerable communities in the face of the impacts of climate change.
Inclusive approaches and nature-based solutions
« Through this project, we have the opportunity to implement innovative solutions, harnessing nature-based approaches and sustainable practices to strengthen our coastal defences. We will work hand in hand with local communities, ensuring that they are actively involved in the decision-making process and that their voices are heard and valued, » explains Abu Bakar Massaquoi, Executive Chairman of the Sierra Leone EPA.
The project will be implemented in partnership with the EPA, local communities and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), following extensive consultations with all relevant stakeholders. The funding agreement was signed on 6 March 2024 at the GCF Board meeting in Kigali, Rwanda.
Fanta Mabo
Launched in 2017 by the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) and the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI) is launching two new platforms to support sustainable cocoa farming in West Africa. The two new resources presented on 14 February 2024 aim to halt deforestation caused by cocoa and restore forest areas. This initiative commits companies in the sector to mapping their supply chains and adopting methodologies for assessing the risks of deforestation, all with a view to transparency and reporting.
As part of these efforts, the World Resources Institute (WRI) has teamed up with 19 major cocoa and chocolate companies to create two key new databases.
The West Africa Cocoa (WAC) dataset, listing the location of cocoa plots in the direct supply chains of participating companies in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Available on Global Forest Watch (GFW), an application that monitors the world’s forests in real time, it provides a detailed view of cocoa production in the region.
Cocoa Deforestation Risk Assessment (Cocoa DRA), a standardised map assessing the risk of future deforestation linked to cocoa production. This resource can be used to identify priority areas for action to promote sustainable production and protect the remaining forests.
These initiatives, the result of unprecedented collaboration, provide a common vision of priority areas for coordinated action to promote an environmentally friendly cocoa sector in West Africa. The WAC data, although sensitive, is made available to the public in the form of a heat map on GFW, guaranteeing the protection of farmers’ privacy. Similarly, the Cocoa DRA identifies areas at risk of future deforestation, helping companies to make informed decisions to reduce their environmental impact.
In 14 years, cocoa has razed 1/3 of Ghana’s forest cover
Together, the WAC and the Cocoa DRA provide a solid basis for decision-making and collective action to eliminate cocoa-related deforestation. As public resources, they contribute to transparent monitoring of the sector and the promotion of sustainable cocoa production in West Africa.
The growing demand for chocolate is having a significant impact on the region’s forests. Around 70% of the world’s cocoa supply comes from Ghana and Ivory Coast, where production sites have replaced millions of hectares of forest. Between 2001 and 2015 alone, cocoa was associated with the loss of a third of Ghana’s forest area and a quarter of that of Ivory Coast.
Fanta Mabo
WEST AFRICA: two new tools to combat cocoa deforestation
Launched in 2017 by the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) and the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), the Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI) is launching two new platforms to support sustainable cocoa farming in West Africa. The two new resources presented on 14 February 2024 aim to halt deforestation caused by cocoa and restore forest areas. This initiative commits companies in the sector to mapping their supply chains and adopting methodologies for assessing the risks of deforestation, all with a view to transparency and reporting.
An alarming new study highlights the devastating consequences of climate change on the African continent. Published on 21 February 2024 by the Centre for Global Development (CDM), the study reveals that more than 200 million people in Africa could be plunged into severe famine after 2050 if adequate adaptation measures are not put in place now.
The study, entitled « The socio-economic impact of climate change in developing countries over the coming decades », reinforces Africa’s position as the continent most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Published by the Centre for Global Development (CDM), a forum where countries share their experience of economic and social development policies, it predicts that after 2050, Africa will be hard hit by the impact of climate disruption.
While the agricultural sector is already threatened by an increase in extreme weather phenomena, rising temperatures and, above all, changes in rainfall, the study shows that income from crops could fall by a third by 2050. Beyond that date, the study predicts a 7.1% contraction in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in Africa. « If the threat of climate change is not addressed, the socio-economic problems of developing countries, particularly in Africa, will worsen and erode the development gains of recent decades », explains Philip Kofi Adom, the author of the study, who is also an economist at the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.
Improving the financing of adaptation in Africa
By 2050, the socio-economic impact of climate change in Africa would also mean an increase in poverty on the continent of 20 to 30% compared to the current situation. If nothing is done, 50 million Africans would face a lack of water and would have to move to other regions. And 200 million of them could be affected by extreme famine.
However, the study also offers a message of hope. By limiting the rise in global temperature to less than 2 degrees Celsius and by improving the financing of adaptation measures, particularly in terms of food security, it is still possible to limit the devastating impacts of climate change in Africa.
Fanta Mabo
AFRICA: climate change will plunge 200 million people into famine
An alarming new study highlights the devastating consequences of climate change on the African continent. Published on 21 February 2024 by the Centre for Global Development (CDM), the study reveals that more than 200 million people in Africa could be plunged into severe famine after 2050 if adequate adaptation measures are not put in place now.
Le ministère des Eaux et Forêts, représenté par le Général de Brigade, M. Maurice Ntossui Allogo, en collaboration avec l’ONG Conservation Justice (CJ), représenté par son Directeur Exécutif M. Luc Mathot, a signé le 1er mars 2024 deux protocoles d’accord, d’une part, avec les sociétés forestières Rougier Gabon et SOMIVAB, représentés respectivement par leurs directeurs généraux M. Stéphane Jaffret et M. Andrea Rigoni, d’autre part, avec la société Gabon Advance Wood (GAW) et la Fondation Lékédi Biodiversité représentés par Mme Sylvie Boldrini et M. Eric Willaume.
Lesdits protocoles d’accord s’inscrivent dans le cadre de la politique forestière de gestion durable des écosystèmes forestiers du Gabon. à laquelle s’ajoute la promotion des systèmes de certification de gestion forestière dont les référentiels imposent aux gestionnaires forestiers de conserver entre autres la diversité biologique (faune et flore). Les brigades faune créées ont d’abord pour rôle l’information, la sensibilisation et l’éducation environnementale, suivie de la surveillance et de la lutte contre les trafics illégaux des ressources naturelles.
D’une durée de deux ans, ces derniers permettront au ministère de mettre en place un cadre de collaboration entre les différentes parties prenantes visant à lutter contre le braconnage et les activités illicites dans les zones périphériques des Parcs Nationaux d’Ivindo et de Minkebe, dans les Unités Forestières d’Aménagement (UFA) de Rougier Gabon situées dans l’Ogooué-Ivindo ainsi que dans les UFA 1 et 2 de la Compagnie Forestière des Abeilles (CFA) et les Conventions Provisoires d’Aménagement (CPAET) GSEZ de Mvoung, Kouye et Touro, gérées et exploitées par SOMIVAB ; et enfin dans la périphérie du Parc de la Lékédi et de l’UFA Ogooué de la société Gabon Advance Wood.
Pour le ministre des Eaux et Forêts, la gestion durable des forêts et de la faune sauvage sont intrinsèquement liées car cette dernière contribue au maintien des services écologiques des forêts et à la santé des écosystèmes : « Les crimes contre la faune tels que le braconnage et le trafic illicite des espèces animales constituent des menaces aussi bien pour la santé de nos forêts que pour le développement économique et la sécurité de notre nation.
Le directeur Exécutif de l’ONG Conservation Justice explique la structure des deux brigades faune créées : « Il s’agit de Partenariats Publics-Privés, financé notamment par l’Union européenne et la coopération allemande (PPECF). Seul on va vite, ensemble on va plus loin. Les enjeux autour des vastes espaces forestiers concernés dépassent d’ailleurs le cadre du Gabon. En effet, la riche forêt gabonaise est utile pour la production de bois mais aussi pour les communautés qui en ont besoin pour leurs besoins quotidiens. Il est estimé que la forêt gabonaise séquestre chaque année 140 millions de tonnes de CO2 par an, ce qui correspond plus ou moins à ce qui est produit par 30 millions de voitures ».
Le Directeur général de Rougier Gabon, Stéphane Jaffret a déclaré : « En tant que gestionnaire forestier responsable, il nous revient de garantir l’intégrité de l’environnement et des ressources naturelles des concessions que nous gérons. Traduit dans l’axe 3 de notre politique RSE, cet engagement nous pousse à travailler en synergie avec nos parties prenantes pour améliorer la biodiversité et prévenir son extinction. »
Boris Ngounou
GABON : signature de 2 accords de partenariat public-privé (PPP) pour la biodiversité
Le ministère des Eaux et Forêts, représenté par le Général de Brigade, M. Maurice Ntossui Allogo, en collaboration avec l’ONG Conservation Justice (CJ), représenté par son Directeur Exécutif M. Luc Mathot, a signé ce jour deux protocoles d’accord, d’une part, avec les sociétés forestières Rougier Gabon et SOMIVAB, représentés respectivement par leurs directeurs généraux M. Stéphane Jaffret et M. Andrea Rigoni, d’autre part, avec la société Gabon Advance Wood (GAW) et la Fondation Lékédi Biodiversité représentés par Mme Sylvie Boldrini et M. Eric Willaume.