Women farmers working in the tree nursery ©FAO

Banjul - The Forestry Department in close partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has trained 25 forest management committee members on how to raise and manage viable tree nurseries for sustainable ecosystem restoration and improved livelihoods. The activity was supported by the “Action Against Desertification” (AAD) project that is funded by the European Union (EU).

The four-year project that runs between 2016 and 2020 aims to address hunger, poverty and the impact of climate change by implementing activities that promote sustainable forest and resilience building. It is executed by FAO and implemented by The Gambian government through the Department of Forestry and partners and addresses land degradation and desertification in the North Bank Regions and the northern banks of Central and Upper River regions. The project benefits farmers, pastoralists, fishermen, sellers of forest products and medicinal herbs, craftsmen and local authorities in 51 communities in the three regions where it operates. According to estimations this geographical area is home to a population of nearly 400.000 people.

The participants that attended the training, were drawn from across the different project intervention areas to enhance their skills.  They have learned and practiced several skills and techniques important in the fight against desertification, such as, quality seed gathering, soil preparation, poly-pot filling, seed treatment, sowing and management of the tree nursery. The practical sessions included visits to Kungkiling Forest Park where they learned how to identify and collect quality seeds. During their visits to the tree-nursery at YBK, located three kilometres from Janjangbureh, the participants also learned about “silviculture”, that is the practice of controlling the growth, composition, health, and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and value. 

Forest resources become more productive and sustainable

More than 400 communities living in the regions where the project is implemented have been reached and supported to enhance their skills to manage their community forest resources within the framework of Participatory Forest Management. The diverse actions supported and promoted by the project are already showing a positive impact in people’s lives and livelihoods.

At the Forestry Department’s tree nursery site in Jarumeh Koto in the Central River Region North, the representatives from 14 communities have successfully raised 100,000 seedlings from ten varieties. 82,000 of these seedlings are ready for transplanting this season, says Mr. Ebrima Sanneh, Regional Forestry Officer. He commends the project for providing equipment such as poly bags, wheelbarrows, spades, cutlasses, watering cans as well as firefighting materials like bicycles, rakes, fire beaters and knapsack sprayers to the local communities.

One of the farmers, Mrs Haddy Secka, explained that the project reduces hunger and poverty through income generation from the sale of seedlings. Another farmer, Mr Alagie Gai, expressed his gratitude because the project is building their capacities in tree nursery management and providing the farmers with better techniques to secure their livelihood that are now more sustainable. This has been achieved through the development of community-based businesses. He noted that the project has empowered local communities to sustainably manage forest resources and combat land degradation and deforestation for improved food security and poverty alleviation.

Sibity Jallow, a farmer from Touba Kuta, has been involved in seedling production since 2002. Speaking to Gambia Radio and Television Services (GRTS) he noted that the training he received through the project on nursery seedlings management and the technical support provided by the forestry staff, has enabled him to establish a viable tree nursery business in his own backyard.

“With the first two sales, I earned 80.000 dalasi”, he said with pride. “The area I use for seedlings production is just 5 m x 10 m (five meters by ten meters). Through my training, I now have a better understanding of how to avoid pests like termites. I love this trade and I want to continue with or without support”.

He encourages young people of Niani to be involved in the tree nursery business, saying he is willing to provide them with the necessary training by sharing his knowledge.

Promoting effective communication for better ecosystems

In a bid to promote effective programming and reporting on how to sustainably manage forest resources and control land degradation and deforestation for the eradication of hunger and poverty, the AAD project has supported the training of 25 journalists and communication officers from the project implementing partners on “Communication for Development”. The communicators were sensitized on the importance of a vibrant ecosystem for sustainable development and were briefed on the rationale, activities and achievements of the AAD project. The training is expected to spur their interest in communicating and advocating for enhanced ecosystems to achieve the national and global development goals. The highlight of the training was a field visit to the regional forestry office in Jarumeh Koto and a backyard seedlings nursery at Touba Kuta in Niani District, Central River Region (CRR).

Background

Desertification, land degradation and drought are among the biggest threats to food security and sustainable development in The Gambia. Desertification has resulted in the loss of nearly 100,000 hectares of forest areas between 1998 and 2009. Currently, the total area of land covered by forest is 423,000 hectares. Government policy aims to protect one third of the total land area that should remain as forests. Furthermore, the local communities should be the ones managing half of these forests in order to satisfy their needs for forest products and services.

Since its launch in 2016, the AAD project has supported 51 rural communities in its interventions sites north of the River Gambia (North Bank Region, Central and Upper River regions north) by building their capacities to control land degradation, deforestation and by teaching them how to sustainably manage the forest resources. It engages 28 community forest villages and 30 lower and basic cycle schools on restoration of ecosystems, in an effort to involve the younger generation. The young students in these schools learn about the importance of protecting and nurturing the environment and nature conservation. They even plant and care for their own orchards on the school ground. The intervention has improved the livelihoods in the rural areas by developing 30 “Community-Based Enterprise Groups” that are managed by 300 members, of which 60-70% are women. The main focus has been on the harvesting, processing and marketing of non‑timber forest products, comprising for example: beekeeping and honey production, edible forest fruits and nuts, and handicrafts.