Thinking beyond the canopy
Follow CIFOR
Facebook Youtube
Slideshare Flickr
Follow CIFOR on Twitter RSS
Wordpress

Video Gallery

Africa's dry forests key to food security

Dry forests are particularly susceptible to climate change, yet they are also the main food supply for around 30 countries in Africa.

View video clip »

from our video archive

Wangari Maathai, Tribute Film for Forest Day 5 »
 Available in other languages
French version »
Spanish version »

Linking Great Ape Conservation And Poverty Alleviation: Field Trip, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia»

Keynote address by Bob Scholes, Systems Ecologist with South Africa's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research »

FOREST NEWS
Forest Lens
Dry forests
  • The dry forests and woodlands of Africa stretch from Ethiopia in the east to Senegal in the west, and from the miombo woodlands south and east of the Congo basin, to the mopane woodlands southern Africa. These landscapes can consist of deciduous forests with a continuous tree canopy, but can also include moist savannas, deciduous woodlands and savannas. Dry forests and grasslands in Western Province, Zambia, 2008, © Fiona Paumgarten.
  • Although these multi-functional and dynamic landscapes are only moderately rich in biodiversity, they cover an extensive area providing a range of ecosystem goods and services. These include carbon sequestration; soil stabilisation; hydrological functions and adaptation to the effects of rising temperatures. Flagship species such as the African elephant and other charismatic megafauna that support economically important wildlife tourism are a feature of conserved areas of these landscapes. African elephants along the Zambezi River (Africa’s fourth largest river system), Zambia, 2010, © Fiona Paumgarten.
  • In total, Africa’s dry forest and woodland ecosystems cover 17.3 million km3 across 31 countries and are home to 505 million people. Consequently, dry forests and woodlands are not only important for biodiversity conservation and the ecosystem services they provide. They also play an important role in contributing to livelihood security, including agriculture and pastoralism. Yet dry forests are disappearing at a rate estimated to be between 50 000 and 250 000 ha per annum. Agroforestry and livestock production systems in Burkina Faso, 2008, © Fiona Paumgarten.
  • The products and services derived from Africa’s dry forests provide an important safety-net for households most vulnerable to the impacts of climate variability, such as those headed by women, or those affected by HIV/Aids. Benefits are derived through the sharing of forest products between households, and through the income generated by the sale of forest products and services. A member of a women’s cooperative roasting shea nuts near Leo, Burkina Faso, 2009, © Tony Cunningham.
  • Despite the ecological and livelihood importance of dry forests, tropical forests have received more attention, particularly within the context of climate change. This is incongruous with the rate at which the dry forests are disappearing. Drivers of deforestation/degradation include charcoal production, timber harvesting, and land conversion to agriculture and biofuels. Failure to address this loss risks losing important goods and services, therefore increasing livelihood insecurity. Indigenous hardwoods cut by pitsawyers being loaded into trucks, Western Zambia, 2010, © Tony Cunningham.
  • Because of their greater biomass and carbon sequestration potential, the humid forests have been the primary focus of forests and climate change research, particularly with respect to mitigation. However, the extensive nature of dry forests suggests their carbon sequestration potential shouldn’t be ignored. Deforestation, land conversion and uncontrolled burning have resulted in an aggregate loss of terrestrial carbon from many vegetation types in Africa’s drylands. A fire in miombo woodlands in Northwestern Zambia, © Tony Cunningham.
  • Africa’s dry forests and their inhabitants have been identified as being particularly susceptible to climate change and variability. Climate change threatens the integrity of the goods and services provided, undermining livelihood security. At the same time, these forests may support local adaptation to climate change and as such, their management needs to be considered in adaptation policies. Forest products such as wild edible fruits, considered as ‘famine foods’ by some, have been shown to make an important contribution to the livelihood security of both rural and urban households and may contribute towards climate change adaptation strategies. Fruits from Ziziphus mauritiana (Masau) for sale, Eastern Zambia, © Fiona Paumgarten.
  • Increasing food production has been at the cost of biodiversity and ecosystem services: the conversion of forest to agriculture can improve rural incomes but often leads to the impoverishment of both ecosystems and livelihoods, undermining food security. Diverse agro-ecological tree-based systems can be equally, if not more productive, notwithstanding the biodiversity benefits. Forestry, agroforestry and agricultural research organisations need to coordinate efforts to achieve more sustainable agricultural systems. A woman prepares wild, edible mushrooms from Zambia’s miombo woodlands for drying, Northwestern Zambia, © Fiona Paumgarten.
  • Charcoal and fuelwood constitute the primary source of energy for both rural and urban households in Africa. Africa’s share of the global production of charcoal continues to increase, no longer driven exclusively by subsistence use and trade: an extensive trade has developed which extends beyond national and international borders. Additionally, the increasing global demand for biofuels is resulting in increasing land conversion across the continent. Bags of charcoal waiting to be transported to Zambia’s urban markets, Central Province, 2009, © Fiona Paumgarten.
  • Political, environmental and socio-economic changes affecting Africa’s dry forests, along with the changing drivers of deforestation, highlight the need to reconsider the role dry forests play in providing environmental goods and services to local communities. Dry forest research is now focusing on climate change mitigation and adaptation, food security and energy. Davidson Gumbo, CIFOR researcher talking to local community members, Zambia © Jeff Walker.
Forest maps
Key events