The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have joined forces to protect West Africa's forests.
The three institutions will carry out a five-year project aimed at strengthening sustainable forest and land management, addressing transboundary forest threats, maximising the livelihoods of forest-depended communities, and building climate resilience across 15 countries in West Africa.
The project - to be implemented by ECOWAS with financial support of over $8 million from Sida and technical support from FAO - will improve knowledge of forests dynamics, support legal reform, establish and share best community-based forest practices across the region.
The new project will support the implementation of the priorities outlined in the Forest Convergence Plan, including: improving knowledge of forest resources and harmonising legislative frameworks for forest policy.
It will develop a regional knowledge portal to improve access to data and share information on best forest management practices; provide legal recommendations and guidelines on forest management; support community groups to implement sustainable forest and land management; and build global capacity and knowledge by South -South cooperation and sharing best forest management practices.
The project will also support the implementation of other national and international commitments of West African countries, such as the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Climate Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
