Strengthening capacities for solid national forest inventories in West African countries
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in partnership with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), with the financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), held a training workshop in Freetown, Sierra Leone, from the 23rd to the 27th of October. The activity focused on the development of robust subregional capacities in national forest inventories (NFIs), an endeavor that carries profound implications for the future of West Africa's landscapes.
Hosted by FAO and the Forestry Department of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change of Sierra Leone, the event gathered 20 participants from five ECOWAS anglophone countries: Gambia (2), Ghana (2), Liberia (2), Nigeria (2), and Sierra Leone (12).
The primary mission of the national forest inventory training workshop was to empower participants with a comprehensive understanding of NFI design, methodologies, and field protocols, emphasizing best practices. Attendees gained practical knowledge and skills in utilizing cutting-edge technologies and innovative approaches to enhance data collection, analysis, and reporting within the framework of NFI. Moreover, a significant outcome of this event was the creation of a collaborative environment, allowing participants from diverse countries to exchange invaluable experiences and expertise in NFI.
The workshop proved to be a catalyst for positive transformation among its participants, as echoed by Chioma Doris Okafor, Federal Department of Forestry of Nigeria, who emphasized the profound impact it had on his perspective: “The workshop provided me with a platform to unlearn, re-learn, and learn new technology, and methodologies employed for an efficient NFI. The use of the OpenForis Arena, exportation, and subsequent analysis of the data gathered was a major takeaway for me, who has majorly been a data collector, and never in the picture of how my data transformed into a statement.”
Another participant, Cherno Gaye, Forestry Department of the Gambia, also highlighted how this workshop has strengthened his capacities: “My key takeaways from the training are the acquisition of knowledge and experience sharing and the spirit of teamwork. The training will serve as a guide for me hence we are working on our NFI. Overall, the training was very effective and result-based oriented.”
This initiative forms a pivotal part of the "Global Transformation of Forests for People and Climate: a focus on West Africa" project, which spans 15 countries in the West African region. The overarching objective is to fortify decision-making in forest and land management and boost subregional capacity through ECOWAS and other partners, facilitating the implementation of the ECOWAS Forest Convergence Plan.
The Assessment of forest data availability and related technical capacity needs in West Africa revealed the pressing need for new data that can be harmonized at a regional scale, especially in countries lacking substantial forest data. Among the nations assessed, Sierra Leone and Guinea and Niger were identified as those with the most substantial forest data gaps. Leveraging the experiences of countries that have recently conducted NFIs, the project is primed for a south-south exchange of invaluable insights. Furthermore, the assessment underscored the necessity of advancing subregional capacities for forest inventories, particularly in terms of harnessing geospatial tools and advanced electronic measurement devices during the inventory process.
Building upon these insights, the project has taken proactive steps to bridge NFI capacity gaps. It has conducted both virtual and field trainings and provided methodological support to bolster NFI design and analysis. The goal is clear: to develop sub-regional capabilities in forest inventory implementation, generating updated and accessible forest data for decision making, and facilitating the transformation of the West African forest landscape.
A similar workshop is on the horizon in Conakry, Guinea, tailored for French and Portuguese-speaking ECOWAS countries in the weeks to come.
National forest inventories: a key source of information
NFIs are defined in FAO's Voluntary Guidelines on National Forest Monitoring (VGNFM) as a technical process of data compilation and forest resources analysis for a whole country. Depending on the specific goals and decision processes, forest inventories are implemented at the local, regional, national, or global level.
They are multi-purpose and can be used to capture data on, for example, biodiversity, socio-economic aspects of forest use, and carbon storage. That is very important since the generated data helps the national government in the decision-making process on forest management and to meet international reporting requirements.
An NFI is one of the essential sources of data (emission factors) for estimating anthropogenic forest-related greenhouse gas emissions.
Coming soon, a revamped NFI e-learning series will be presented in a webinar on 15 november by the National Forest Monitoring (NFM) team, in collaboration with the FAO elearning Academy providing an overview of the key phases of an NFI, from planning to implementation, and from data gathering to reporting.
Related links:
Contact:
Jonathan Wesley Roberts, National Forest Inventory Expert, Forestry Division, FAO
[email protected]