Suchergebnisse

Humid conditions and equatorial forest in the Congo Basin have allowed for the maintenance of significant biodiversity and carbon stock. The ecological services and products of this forest are of high importance, particularly for smallholders living in forest landscapes and watersheds. Unfortunately, in addition to deforestation and forest degradation, climate change/variability are impacting this region, including both forests and populations. We developed three case studies based on field observations in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as information from the literature. Our key findings are: (1) the forest-related water cycle of the Congo Basin is not stable, and is gradually changing ; (2) climate change is impacting the water cycle of the basin ; and, (3) the slow modification of the water cycle is affecting livelihoods in the Congo Basin. Developmental and environmental actions in the Congo Basin need to properly consider the slight modification of this water cycle in watersheds that affect products and services from the forest.

Over the last two decades, in the Congo Basin, the implementation of forest policy reforms has focussed on the regulation of large-scale logging concessions, while small-scale logging activities, carried out mostly with chainsaws, and sourcing the domestic or regional market, have been sidelined by official policy. As a consequence, chainsaw milling developed largely as an informal activity, has been poorly researched in recent decades, and its dynamics and impacts on rural livelihoods, as well as its timber production, remain largely unknown to concerned ministries and are not included in national and international statistics. We found that chainsaw milling, albeit largely informal and illegal, contributes about 1.2m cubic meters of processed products to the domestic markets of considered countries, which is equivalent to the production of the formal, large-scale, industrial forestry sector. Also, chainsaw milling has positive economic impacts on the livelihoods options of many thousands of citizens living in rural areas, with annual financial gains larger than ¿40m in Cameroon and Gabon. Nonetheless, because of its informal nature, chainsaw milling not only does not contribute to the formal revenues of the State, but also engender corrupt practices that contribute about ¿10m to the private gains of civil servants. The adoption of legal frameworks adapted to the current needs of the timber domestic market is a necessary (technical) first step towards the professionalisation and formalisation of the sector, but a clear (political) step by concerned governments towards the sanctioning of corrupt practices by civil servants is also badly needed.

The 2015 edition of the State of the Forests of the Congo Basin is a number issued specifically for the 21th Conference of Parties in Paris. Indeed, it is envisaged that during the conference a global climate agreement could be reached by the international community. To support their participation in the Conference, the countries of the COMIFAC had planned several activities during the year 2015. Among these activities, it was decided to publish a special report on forests and climate change in Central Africa. This report comes thus to support for the negotiations in Paris and focuses on the role of the rain forest in mitigating climate change and the impacts of these changes on the adaptation of populations and ecosystems in Central Africa.

Der Ausbau der Wassernutzung am Kongo könnte der Region einen Entwicklungsschub verschaffen, droht aber mit der Begünstigung partikulärer Nutzungsinteressen einherzugehen. In seinem weitläufigen Einzugsgebiet ist der Fluss das wichtigste Verkehrsnetz und die Lebensader des afrikanischen Regenwalds, der wiederum die Existenzgrundlage von Millionen Menschen sichert. Die Wasser- und Nahrungsmittelversorgung der Region ließe sich mit seinen Ressourcen deutlich verbessern, die Hydroenergiepotentiale könnten den Strombedarf des gesamten Kontinents decken. Der geplante Bau weiterer Großdämme an den Inga-Fällen zeigt, dass die zehn Anrainerstaaten gemeinsame Ziele verfolgen, aber auch, dass sich Konflikte zwischen einzelnen Sektoren verschärfen. Die inkonsistente Haltung Deutschlands in heiklen Grundsatzfragen der Entwicklungszusammenarbeit und Wasseraußenpolitik erschwert es, diese Prozesse konstruktiv zu begleiten. (Autorenreferat)

Making greater of use of the waters of the Congo could boost development across - and beyond - the region, but threatens to favour particular users' interests at the expense of others. Within its enormous catchment area, the Congo is the dominant transport network and the lifeblood of the African rain forest, upon which millions depend for their livelihoods. Tapping the river's resources could significantly improve the region's water and food supplies, while its hydro-energy potential could theoretically satisfy the electricity needs of the entire continent. Plans to construct more major dams at the Inga Falls demonstrate that the ten Congo Basin states are pursuing common goals - but also having to deal with sharpening intersectoral conflicts. An inconsistent line on dam-building makes it harder for Germany to play a constructive role in these development processes.