©FAO
At the request of the Government of Nigeria, twenty-nine technical experts and government officials gathered in Abuja, Nigeria, for a workshop led by the Global Forest Observations Initiative (GFOI) to connect and collaborate in the context of its Country-Led Planning (CLP) programme. The workshop was held with the support of Nigeria’s Federal Department of Forestry (Ministry of Environment).
Nigeria was nominated to participate in the GFOI's CLP programme in 2025 to support the institutionalization and long-term sustainability of its national forest monitoring system (NFMS). Since joining the programme, Nigeria has made significant strides in advancing its NFMS, demonstrating strong national ownership, commitment and momentum for sustainable forest monitoring.
“Nigeria's engagement in the country led planning process reflects the recognition that a sustainable NFMS… should be embedded in institutions supported by clear governance arrangements, sustained financing and skilled human capacity,” said Ms Halima Bawa-Bwari, Director of the Federal Department of Forestry, in her opening remarks.
The workshop was facilitated by Marco Mezzera, GFOI CLP Governance Specialist. The session began with an introduction to the CLP programme and a comprehensive review of Nigeria’s policy context in relation to the institutional NFMS framework.
As an opportunity to outline the challenges to institutionalizing the NFMS, the workshop facilitated a plenary discussion with the participants. Multiple barriers to achieving a sustainably institutionalized NFMS were noted in the discussions, such as data fragmentation, overlapping mandates, federal–state disconnect, underutilization of existing coordination mechanisms, uneven technical capacities and limited inclusivity.
“There is need to institutionalize [the NFMS] and make it a process, not a project… how do we ensure that the process integrates all stakeholders?” asked Professor Victor Ajibola J. Adekunle.
To drive meaningful progress, the stakeholders outlined key priority actions to enhance coordination and long-term resilience for the NFMS. During the discussions, consensus emerged among the participants that Nigeria must move from fragmented, project based efforts to a coherent, institutionalized and nationally owned NFMS.
Participants called for the establishment of a secure national forest data platform and data sharing protocol. Similarly, there is an urgent need for clear definitions, standards and templates, including forest definitions, measurement protocols, data requirements, allometric models and reporting templates.
The need for improved coordination and collaboration among academic institutions and government agencies was emphasized to achieve more demand-driven and better integrated work. Moreover, participants advocated for improving the sustainability of financing by solidifying national forest budgets, exploring funding mechanisms and transitioning interventions from project-based to institutionalized processes.
The GFOI Office extends its thanks to the country office of GFOI Lead partner the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), who hosted the workshop at their offices and provided the logistic arrangements in support of the national government.
