NCF, Anamelo partnership holds promise for sustainable forest mgt

A recent partnership entered into by the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) and Anamelo Forest Concession Limited (AFCL) has raised hope for sustainable forest management in Nigeria.  The partnership has also given a boost to the call by NCF for the restoration of the country’s forest cover to at least 25% through the Green Recovery Nigeria (GRN).

 The partnership also underpins the recognition, importance, momentum and support which the call for forest cover is receiving from both the public and private sectors in the country.

In a bid to address the gloomy and speculation that Nigeria’s landscape may wear the look of  a country without forest cover over the next 30 years, NCF has, through the GRN Initiative, a multi-stakeholder platform for re-greening the nation’s landscape, enjoined all and sundry to engage in aggressive tree planting and responsible forest management to mitigate the consequences of a desert experience.

In response to the call, AFCL has launched a community engagement and tree planting programme in Tumbuyan Village, Ilesha-Ibaruba, a community in Kwara State to build local capacity in tree nursery operations, tree planting and woodlot establishment for energy purposes.

“It is the responsibility of economic actors in the forest sector to ensure the sustainability of the forest so as to secure their businesses and livelihoods”, said Edward Ayeni,  CEO of  AFCL, said in a state obtained by BusinessDay.

 He noted that forest businesses will in the near future be constrained by the shrinking forest cover if actors fail to plough back into the environment. He revealed that AFCL have been able to plant 7,000 seedlings in areas previously deforested with support from the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN) and NCF.

An area measuring over 65 hectares of marginal land had been earmarked for rehabilitation in the coming years and AFCL will scale-up efforts in subsequent years to secure the livelihood of the communities through sustainable agroforestry management.

The Emir of the Ilesha-Ibaruba Kingdom, Halidu Abubakar, was impressed with the initiative as he expressed profound appreciation and commended AFCL for bringing the community to limelight through the tree planting initiative.

He promised the support and commitment of the community to the project and extended gratitude to NCF, FRIN and the Kwara State Ministry of the Environment and Habitat for availing the community with technical support and other logistics in the area of tree planting.

Adeniyi Karunwi, Director General of NCF, noted that the forest is the backbone of rural economy and extolled the dynamic efforts of Ayeni in driving the community tree planting inauguration at a scale unparalleled in recent history of tree planting efforts in the state.

“With NCF’s renewed role as the environmental watchdog and whistleblower, we are committed to our vision of a country where people live in harmony with nature. Forest stakeholders and users are,  therefore, encouraged to refrain from unsustainable forest practices and report progress made in the area of forest landscape restoration in Nigeria for proper documentation and future reference”, he said.