Promoting Stewardship Of Forests In The Humid Forest Zone Of Anglophone West And Central Africa

The report is organised into nine chapters. The first chapter gives an account of the forestry situation in West and Central Africa, with emphasis on vegetation distribution and factors affecting forest management. Chapters 2 and 3 highlight past and present silvicultural and forest management practices and also consider management control systems. The relevance of biodiversity and the role of non-timber forest products are explored in Chapter 4. Inter-generational issues, socio-economic factors influencing sustainable forest management, and the relevance of policies and legislation are addressed in Chapters 5, 6 and 7. Chapter 8 outlines strategies and incentives which might be adopted to promote sustainable forest management. The report concludes with suggestions for research which could be undertaken to fill gaps in knowledge which became apparent in the course of this project.

This publication contains 14 case studies which detail successful examples of sustainable forest management practices identified and demonstrate the evolution of the forest sector in Central Africa. This is part of an initiative, undertaken within the framework of the FAO/Netherlands Partnership Programme and in close collaboration with regional and international organisations, to highlight the numerous efforts undertaken in forest management over the last 20 years to promote all aspects of sustainable development.

Many countries around the world are engaged in decentralization processes, and most African countries face serious problems with forest governance, from benefits sharing to illegality and sustainable forest management. This book summarizes experiences to date on the extent and nature of decentralization and its outcomes - most of which suggest an underperformance of governance reforms - and explores the viability of different governance instruments in the context of weak governance and expanding commercial pressures over forests. Findings are grouped into two thematic areas: decentralization, livelihoods and sustainable forest management; and international trade, finance and forest sector governance reforms. The authors examine diverse forces shaping the forest sector, including the theory and practice of decentralization, usurpation of authority, corruption and illegality, inequitable patterns of benefits capture and expansion of international trade in timber and carbon credits, and discuss related outcomes on livelihoods, forest condition and equity. The book builds on earlier volumes exploring different dimensions of decentralization and perspectives from other world regions, and distills dimensions of forest governance that are both unique to Africa and representative of broader global patterns. The authors ground their analysis in relevant theory while drawing out implications of their findings for policy and practice.

The theme of this paper is that proper pricing supported by new concession policies can encourage and support sustainable management and conservation of the forests of West and Central Africa and finance forest management. Until the forestry departments, which are under-funded and under-equipped, can be strengthened, a simpler system of forest fees that emphasizes bidding and concession fees is recommended. The forest revenue and concession policies proposed involve the following components: annual concession rent, which should be the major revenue source, to replace the multiplicity of forest fees, that are often not collected; competitive bidding system; and replacement of logging concessions by forest management concessions.

The advent of the new government in the Democratic Republic of Congo offers new opportunities to preserve some of the last remaining tracts of frontier forest in Africa. This report recommends areas for attention and policies for promoting sound environmental management.

This study looks at the contestation of forestry in West Africa, taking into account historical considerations, cultural negotiations and environmental issues.

The book follows a first edition published in 1989, which focused on the severe economic crisis Ghana faced during the late 1970s and the early 1980s. In this second edition, the authors extend the review up to the mid-2010s, covering the entire period since independence, with a special focus on shifts in economic policy, starting with the adoption of the Economic Recovery Programme in 1983. Huq and Tribe provide systematic coverage of Ghanaian economic development since its independence, reviewing the two main modes of development that have been practiced; and offer an updated, rich data bank. By analyzing the wider macroeconomy of Ghana; its individual sectors; money, banking and trade; infrastructure and environmental policies; and Ghana’s poverty, welfare and income distribution, the authors are able to draw vital lessons from the country’s economic development. ​