By Etienne Mainimo Mengnjo
Central Africa’s vast wilderness, crucial for global climate and local communities, suffers from deforestation and lack of resources.
The Congo Basin, a region encompassing rainforests across six Central African countries, is under siege. Research centers have warn of an alarming rate of deforestation threatening this critical ecosystem, dubbed the world’s largest carbon sink.
“This is a global issue,” said Richard Eba’a Atyi, Regional Coordinator for Central Africa at CIFOR-ICRAF, during a recent forum in Bonn, Germany. “The Congo Basin is a major source of rainfall in the Sahel region. A huge proportion of the world’s ecosystem services come from this region.”
The Congo Basin forests are vital not just for the planet’s health but also for the well-being of millions who rely on its resources.
“It’s not conservation for conservation’s sake, but for the benefit of the local communities and Indigenous Peoples who live there and their livelihoods,” said Dr. Aurelie Flore Koumba Pambo, Facilitator at the Congo Basin Forest Partnership (CBFP). “If these forests stand today, it is because people are taking care of them.”
The urgency is clear. According to a forthcoming report by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Congo Basin absorbs an astounding 40 gigatons of carbon annually, offsetting a significant portion of global human emissions.
However, this vital resource is shrinking. Experts warn that unless immediate action is taken, the basin’s forests could lose 27 percent of their cover by 2050. Unsustainable logging and mining are major culprits, often operating illegally.
A key challenge lies in understanding the complex dynamics of the Congo Basin. “Science is needed to inform decision-making,” stressed Eba’a Atyi.
Furthermore, the region is severely underfunded for conservation efforts. Over the past decade, Central Africa received a mere 11.5 percent of global funding allocated to tropical forest conservation.
The Congo Basin stands at a crossroads. Protecting this irreplaceable ecosystem requires a multi-pronged approach: tackling the root causes of deforestation, securing adequate funding, and ensuring the well-being of local communities who are the basin’s stewards.
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