Central Africa: managing fuelwood resources better in the face of runaway urbanization

The picture of a lush tropical Africa where wood resources are regenerated as fast as they are used has had its day, due to over-use of those resources. In Central Africa, fuelwood accounts for 80% of all the wood taken from forest ecosystems, and provides the lion's share of domestic energy. This is now a major cause of forest degradation, particularly in periurban areas. For Jean-Noël Marien, a CIRAD researcher, "as the population has grown, we have almost reached the point of no return as regards forest degradation, particularly in periurban areas, where wood is the main energy source". In Kinshasa in particular, the population has doubled in the space of a generation, and now stands at eight million. All these people use wood taken from the forests.

"It is vital to be able to continue to supply towns with fuelwood"
How can we continue to supply towns while limiting the environmental impact on forests? This is question that is due to be answered by the EU Makala project, which has just begun. Makala means "embers" in Lingala. The project is to be conducted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo, where wood accounts for 85% of domestic energy. The aim is to help manage the resource better. "We need to be able to continue supplying towns with fuelwood, as in most places, it is the only fuel used for cooking", Jean-Noël Marien adds. "However, we should also be able to limit the adverse environmental effects, such as deforestation or ecosystem degradation."
The researchers will begin by analysing fuelwood (charcoal, firewood) supply chains to determine where the wood comes from, and in what quantities. In Kinshasa, for instance, the charcoal used may have come from 300 to 400 km away. How is it transported? How much do households consume? What impact does transport have on the environment?
Following the analysis, the researchers are planning to work along two lines. In grassland areas, they will be replanting, notably with acacia. "Acacia is a popular species already grown by local people, as it grows quickly and provides good firewood", Jean-Noël Marien explains. In severely degraded forest areas, the aim is to restore the forests' ecological and economic value, for instance by replanting traditional local forest species, whose wood is much appreciated as fuelwood. Fruit trees will also be grown to provide new sources of income.
Securing land ownership: a fundamental issue
All the field operations will be conducted through local associations, which should make it possible to work on securing land ownership. "This is a fundamental issue that hampers rural development initiatives", says Jean-Noël Marien. "There are disputes between the traditional powers held by villages or clans, which have traditionally owned the land, and the State, the official owner, which operates through title deeds." More secure land ownership rights would provide producers with guarantees for long-term investments. This will involve organizing talks between traditional leaders and State representatives. The researchers hope that this will give rise to relatively simple rules.
Lastly, the aim will also be to convert wood into charcoal, hence boosting its energy yield. Steps will have to be taken to ensure that local people take this technological approach on board, in both social and cultural terms.
The project has 3 million euros of EU funding, and is scheduled to run for four years. It involves four European and six national or regional players.

Partners

• CIRAD
• Centre for International Forest Research (CIFOR), Cameroon
• Ecole régionale d’aménagement intégré des forêts tropicales (ERAIFT), Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Gembloux Agricultural Science Faculty (FUSAGX), Belgium
• Hanns Seidel Foundation, Germany
• Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Tourism (MECNT), Sustainable Development Directorate and National Reafforestation Service, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Ministry of Forestry Economy (MEF), National Reafforestation Service, Republic of the Congo
• Musée royal d’Afrique centrale Tervuren, Belgium
• Research Unit on Commercial Forest Productivity (UR2PI), Republic of the Congo
• University of Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo