PAMACC News - Illegal charcoal trade has been identified as key driver to deforestation globally. To stem the massive tide of  illegally harvesting, production and exporting from different forests across the globe, Somalia has joined other stakeholders to push for cross-border efforts for meaningful results. The Somalia's government made their voice heard at the UN-supported conference on charcoal in Mogadishu, May 7th2018.

According to a press release from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) the Somalian government have joined other stakeholders to call for international cooperation in halting illegal export of charcoal.

Certain forestry products like charcoal are not allowed to be exported from Somalia the release say. The country has struggled to protect its natural forests from rapid and widespread illegal logging and for these measures to be effective, international cooperation with other African countries and Gulf states was imperative.

« “We need a holistic response to address the issues of charcoal in Somalia. Both the demand and

supply side have to be tackled – to do this we need cooperation to implement the UN Security Council Resolution and ensure the environmental, economic and human losses that happen because of illegal charcoal trade are curbed, »  said the Deputy Prime Minister

It should be recalled that a similar call for international cooperation was made by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 2017 to stem massive exportation of charcoal from Myanmar to China. The FAO tracks forest cover globally, said in the report that between 1990 and 2015, Myanmar lost about 15 million hectares of forest and other wooded land.

 In Cameroon government officials say there is increasing amounts of charcoal burning for cooking and heating in recent years as Cameroon's electricity and gas supplies fail to keep pace with demand, raising concerns among forest stakholders about growing deforestation and carbon emissions in the country. The Cameroon government has also condemned this growing trend pledging to intensify efforts at eliminating the scorge in line with the 2012 UN resolution against illegal charcoal trade and export.

The charcoal supply for Cameroon's two biggest cities comes principally from the East region, which harbours rich forest reserves that are important for Cameroon in particular and the Congo Basin in general.

DEFORESTATION FEARS

Experts fear that if the energy crisis continues unabated it could contribute to growing deforestation that could worsen climate change and lead to more severe weather.

"Charcoal is obtained from the burning of trees, and if this trend continues you can imagine the quantity of trees the country is going to lose and what impact this will have for the future," said Ebia Ndongo, director of forestry in the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife.

Like in Myanmar, the export of charcoal from Somalia has been banned, both by a 2012 United Nations Security Council resolution and by the Somali Government, due to its destructive effect on the environment and its exacerbation of conflict and humanitarian crises.

The UNEP Press release says an estimated 8.2 million trees were cut down for charcoal in Somalia between 2011 and 2017,increasing land degradation, food insecurity and vulnerability to flooding and drought.

It has been estimated that over 80 percent of charcoal produced in Somalia is exported to Gulf States and neighbouring countries.

Illegal trade in charcoal is recognised as a key contributor to insecurity in Somalia, providing a major source of funding for militias, terrorist groups, and other actors linked to conflict, who illegally tax exports.

But Somalian government say they are more than ready to halt the scourge.

« Somali government is commitment to halting illegal trade of charcoal and providing alternative energy options, » the Deputy Prime Minister of Somalia, Mahdi Mohamed Guled, reaffirmed at the opening of the conference.

 He also called for urgent action and support from the

international community and countries that are importing charcoal.

“We need a holistic response to address the issues of charcoal in Somalia. Both the demand and supply side have to be tackled – to do this we need cooperation to implement the UN Security Council Resolution and ensure the environmental, economic and human losses that happen because of illegal charcoal trade are curbed,” said the Deputy Prime Minister.

He notes that the environmental destruction brought on by the charcoal trade contributes to drought,flooding, the loss of livelihoods and increase in food insecurity.

« Together with conflict, this exacerbates the humanitarian situation in Somalia,” said the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, Peter de Clercq. “But due to high levels of poverty in Somalia and lack of opportunities, many are forced to turn to unsustainable and illegal livelihoods, such as charcoal production. The people of this country deserve better”.

Juliette Biao Koudenoukpo, UN Environment Regional Director for Africa, also emphasised on the need for regional partnership to stop the unsustainable production, use and export of charcoal in Somalia, expressing the willingness of UN Environment to support such cooperation efforts.

 “UN Environment and its partners are supporting the Government of Somalia to develop sound policy frameworks to support the ban and find alternatives to charcoal,” she said.

The UNEP Press release said participants at the event, were expected to develop a concrete road map for action, including enforceable regional policies, to halt charcoal trade, as well as itsunsustainable production and use within Somalia.

 The high-level summit is supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UN Environment, and the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), with funding from Sweden, the European Union and Italy.

Les besoins pour l’Afrique, concernant l’électrification sont immenses.

A ce jour, les tendances sont encourageantes, les approbations de financements se sont concentrées sur l’accès à l’énergie, c’est donc encourageant. Cependant, nous pourrions faire un peu plus, ont estimé des organisations de la société civile (OSC) africaine.

Réunies à l’auditorium Babacar Fall de la Banque africaine de développement (BAD) d’Abidjan, du 7 au 9 mai 2018, à l’occasion d’une première rencontre des OSC, il planchait sur le thème : « Réduire le fossé énergétique pour une industrialisation réussie de l’Afrique : table ronde pour diffuser les solutions à grande échelle ». Une rencontre organisée par plusieurs structures, notamment l'Alliance Panafricaine pour la Justice Climatique (PACJA).

« Aujourd’hui, les financements pour l’accès à l’énergie sont importants. Nous n’entendons pas moins de la part de la BAD. Entre 2013 et 2017, les parts de financements sont passés de 16% à 70% c’est donc encourageant. Mais nous pouvons mieux faire, car le besoin sur le continent est encore immense » a souligné Thuli Makama, Africa Senior Advisor à OilChange international.

« Si l’Afrique et la BAD veulent réaliser l’industrialisation, il faut prendre en compte ceux qui parlent disent que c’est cher. Si vous démystifier le secteur, si vous enlever les subventions des énergies fossiles vous verrez le résultat. Il y a un cri de cœur. Les populations ont besoin de quelque chose de nouveau. Ne nous laissons pas distraire par le lobby des énergies fossiles. Nous avons besoin de la masse critique », a-t-elle ajouté.

Un avis partagé par Mithika Mwenda, secrétaire général de PACJA. « Seule une véritable synergie des actions de la BAD permettra de régler de manière transversale le problème. Et nous avons besoin de la masse critique des organisations de la société civile pour accompagner la Banque dans l’industrialisation du continent », a-t-il indiqué.

Selon les données actualisées, 640 millions d’Africains qui n’ont pas accès à l’énergie. L’objectif du continent est de combler le GAP d’ici à 2025. Pour cela il faut investir jusqu’à 90 milliards de dollars, a révélé Al-Hamadou Dorsouma, expert en changement climatique à la BAD.

« La BAD, toute seule, ne peut pas arriver à financer. Encore que dans certains pays, les coûts d’accès à l’électricité sont encore élevés. Sans compter qu’il manque souvent des projets bancables parce qu’ils ne sont pas bien préparés. Ce sont des barrières pour la pénétration des énergies renouvelables (ER) », a souligné Dorsouma, soulignant que si chaque pays détenait un projet cohérent et concis en matière d’accès à l’ER, il serait mieux accompagné.

Plus de trois cent organisations de la Société Civile (OSC), en provenance de divers pays africains sont réunis à Abidjan à l'initiative de la Banque Africaine de Développement pour plancher sur l'engagement des OSC dans l'industrialisation en Afrique.

Cette rencontre est la première du genre, après la décision de la BAD d’impliquer un peu plus les OSC dans des débats portant sur des sujets cruciaux pour le continent africain.

YAOUNDE, Cameroon (PAMACC News) - Ongoing land reforms in many African nations like Liberia and Cameroon have yet to incorporate any special protection for vulnerable groups, who struggle to claim ownership of natural resources, activists say.

But civil society organisations and other activists are intensifying their efforts to push governments to speed up land reform processes and establish clear legislation securing the rights of vulnerable groups to own, access and control land and other natural resources.

In Liberia for example the International Land Coalition (ILC) Africa, has added its voice to that of the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) Working Group on Land Rights Reform in that country to demand for a people-centred land bill on land rights.

In a statement issued by ILC Africa’s Chair, Shadrack Omondi, on April 17 2018, the platform called on President George Weah and the Senate to review the Land Rights Act to ensure it responded to the needs of vulnerable communities.

 "Liberia’s shared and sustained economic growthdepends on secured land rights for communities
and vulnerable groups," the statement noted.

It points out that the Land Rights Act (LRA) in Liberia as passed in August 2017 does not offer adequate protection for community land rights and thus risks plunging the the country into another circle of conflict.

Research suggests land disputes continue to fuel resource based conflicts in Africa. Such disputes mostly arise from weak land and natural resource tenure,which causes power imbalances and pushes different groups to their limits.

"Conflicts break out as communities seek for extra judicial solutions to secure their lives and livelihoods. Liberia’s Land Rights Act is a unique opening to ensure secure access to landrights and improved livelihoods for all, especially women, youth and Indigenous Peoples," the statement notes.

It called on the President and the Senate to seize the  opportunity to build a strong,peaceful, just and equitable Liberia-and ensure that it can attract investments for development that is sustainable and the benefits from which are equally distributed.

A similar call was made in Cameroon recently by women landrights activist for African leaders to institute landreforms that include legal safeguards to protect women’s rights to land ownership.

The African Women's Network for Community Management of Forests,RECAFOF, an international NGO, believes only reforms that include legal safeguards giving women equal say in decisions made by customary and state authorities on managing land and forest resources will boost gender equality on the continent.

“We know that wherever land rights are being ignored, women are indisputably the most affected. Banding together and raising awareness of these issues is the first step toward ensuring all women’s rights are recognised,” Cécile Ndjebet, president of REFACOF, said in a statement.

KEY TO DEVELOPMENT

Ongoing land reforms in African nations such as Liberia,Cameroon, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Senegal have yet to incorporate any special protection for women and other vulnerable communities according to ILC and REFACOF.

“Globally, people are starting to understand the contributions women make to development. The importance of securing land rights for women in achieving development can therefore not be over-emphasised,” said Ndjebet.

The ILC statement on its part called on the inclusion of all stakeholders, and especially communities, in finalising the land Bill, for Liberia to move to truly people-centred land governance and improve the lives of 85% of its population living in rural areas and depending on land for their shelter and livelihoods.

" We call upon all stakeholders to intensify their efforts towards promoting dialogue. We hope consensus can be built on how to strengthen the Bill and use it as a tool for promoting unity, wealth creation and sustainable peace," ILC Africa’s chair, Shadrack Omondi said.

It should be recalled that in 2014, former President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf presented the Land

Rights Act (LRA) and in 2017, the Lower House of Parliament of Liberia voted the bill. However, with some newly added and amended provisions, Omondi
fears the bill could undermine community land rights and create future tensions.
 

Liberia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper notes that women are major players in the agricultural sector, making up the majority of small-holder producers and the agricultural labour force.

Women produce some 60 percent of agricultural goods and carry out 80 percent of trading activities in rural areas, but they have less access to productive inputs than men, including land, skills training, basic tools and technology, the strategy says.

The situation is similar in many developing countries,espacially in Africa. In Western and Central Africa, generally less than 10 percent of landholders are women, according to data from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation.

As floods and pollution wreak havoc on a key industry, prompting visitors to stay away, fishermen and businesses in Limbe fear not only the sea but also the future. PAMACC's  Elias Ntungwe Ngalame reports

LIMBE, Cameroon (PAMACC News) - Sitting in front of his plank house in Batoke Limbe, a coastal village in Cameroon’s South-west region, Ngeme John , 45 arranges his boat and net in readiness for the day’s early morning  catch.

But the planned expedition won’t take place on the fishing spot around his village, as it used to. Just 2km away, the formerly coastal fresh air now smells of gasoline and petroleum spills.

The silence of the surrounding mangrove forest is broken by the honking and rumbling of patrol tankers and heavy duty trucks.
He stares vacantly at the rolling sea, struggling to hold back the tears in the eyes in desperation.

"I have lived here for over 25 years, but never experienced this type of polluted environment before ," says John, a fisher man in Batoke some 5 KM away from Mile six a renowned tourist beach in Limbe.

Marine pollution along the coastal town of Limbe stretching through Douala in Cameroon has continued to surge in recent years .

As a result, John now must venture about 30km away from home to fish.

He and the entire fishing community along the coast complain their livelihood have been destroyed  by the disaster. Environmentalists are sounding the death knell too.
“This petroleum exploitation project has made life perilous for us,” John said . “The polluted waters have scared all the fish. We are obliged to go fishing far away, where we can find something to eat and earn some income to send our children to school ,”he explained.

The Cameroon government says it is touting oil resource exploitation in the shores of Limbe as part of the country’s ambitious plans towards an emerging economy by 2035.

The country’s lone National Oil Refinery, known by its French Acronym as SONARA, in 2014 invested FCFA 620 billion to facilitate the refining of locally produced crude oil ,according to the ministry of mines and energy. The project now permits the company to refine 100 percent of crude oil produced in Cameroon up from just 10% before 2014.
The government says the project has scaled up production capacity from 2,100,000 tons to 3,500,000 tons.

“The oil refining project has stepped up petroleum production in the country »,said  Gaston Eloundou, Minister of water and Energy resources.

Environment expert say  the project is key driver to maritime pollution with accidental crude oil leakage from drilling ,oil transporting ships and ruptured pipelines.
According Bio-resource Centre, an NGO on environment in Cameroon – the Limbe coastal city and surrounding villages is slowly swallowed by repeated floods and water pollution exposing the population to multiple environmental hazards. The Mile Six Beach is regularly covered with spilled oil and the black volcanic sand has been decolorised to brown.

« In some parts of flooded area, only the tops of houses and trees are seen emerging from the water , » says Augustine Njamnshi , CEO of Bio-resource centre. He blamed the persistent floods on the claring of mangrove forest along the shores.

« Mangrove forests along the coast are crucial to protecting the shoreline and mitigating damage from storms and high seas, » says Samuel  Nguiffo of the Centre for Environment and Development in Cameroon, an NGO that deals with forest and land issues.

The protection of marine ecosystems and the maritime environment is important not only for aquatic life but also the health of residents in coastal communities, health officials say.

«  Air and water pollution bring respiratory, heart, eyesight, skin diseases, leading  to death, » says Dr Joyce Ebenson of the Buea district hospital.
But the company has dismissed claims of sea water pollution, saying it soil drilling  are in compliance with the law and environmental norms

“These allegations are simply perpetrated by some of our detractors,” said Blascius Ngome, the public relations director of the company.
The company however admitted  pollution from gas emissions in the oil refining process but noted this is sufficiently carried to acceptable higher levels in the atmosphere.

In an earlier press statement , the general manager of the company, Ibrahim Talba Mallah, said the company’s expansion efforts is also geared at addressing a “dire humanitarian need in the immediate environment”, easing local unemployment and also supporting the local council’s fight against climate disasters.

Home to some 6 million people, Limbe and Douala, two Cameroon’s biggest coastal cities have in recent years suffered from deadly floods and related  water borne epidemics.
"We are having persistent floods in these coastal areas making business really difficult, »said the government delegate to the Limbe city council Andrew Motanga.

« Last year the floods were so heavy that many families, mostly children and mothers who found refuge on rooftops, were rescued from the deluge by the army’s fire fighting brigade,” he explained.

Officials of the Cameroon National Red Cross say natural disasters in the Southwest region and Limbe in particular  has increased in the past 10years.
« Climate change is already wrecking havoc and oil spills only come to aggravate matters, » said Sophia Namondo of the Cameroon Red Cross, Limbe chapter.

Business and tourism down

Local Council authorities say the exquisite sandy beach flanked by greeneries of mangrove forest has gradually disappeared.

«  The ecological attraction and volcanic sand believed to possess magic powers from Mount Fako is increasingly disappearing. Our visitors for picnicking, sunbath and and consumers of fresh fish are no longer coming,’ » said Andrew.

«  The fishes, the fishermen and tourists are going away, » he said, shaking his head in apparent frustration.
Statistics from Limbe’s city council show that tourist visits to the region in 2017dropped by more than 60% compared with three years before.

For Keneth Doh a bar restaurant owner in Ngeme village  and other vendors, tourist guides, the shrinking and stinking coast is a complete disaster to their livelihoods.
"The decline in the number of customers in our restaurants is affecting our business , » said Keneth.

Mary Dione, owner of a roasted fish and seafood restaurant, estimates her business is down by 50 percent due to the disappearance of customers at the beach.
"When customers come and feel very uncomfortable with the gasoline stench, they go somewhere else," Mary said.

« I have been doing this business here for over 25 years.  My life and that of my family is here, where do I go from here, »she wonders.

SOLUTION

Local Council authorities say they are carrying out weekly cleaning and have resumed tree planting along the coast. The council is looking to raise funds to do more beach cleaning work in hopes of making the area attractive again, Andrew Mutanga said.

The first step to protecting the shore line from extreme weather could be through major reforestation efforts, experts say.

“A tree-planting project by the local council with support from the government is necessary along the entire coastline,” Samuel Nguiffo says.
« When local councils are empowered they can better combat the effects of climate change and pollution, »he adds.