Making African forests fit for climate change

This policy brief is the result of collaboration between the IUFRO-led CPF initiative “Global Forest Expert Panels” (GFEP), the IUFRO Special Programme for Developing Countries (IUFRO-SPDC), key experts from the Forestry Research Network for Sub-Saharan Africa, and on-going international research projects in Africa. It is based on a detailed analysis of relevant information contained in the global assessment report.  Adaptation of Forests and People to Climate Change (IUFRO World Series Volume 22) and more than 250 additional literature references identified by African experts. These references have been analysed in a separate scientific report “Making African Forests Fit for Climate Change”. 

We express our sincere gratitude to the following experts for their contributions to the analysis: Louis Bernard Cheteu (Cameroon), Joseph Cobbinah (Ghana), Francis Dwomoh (Ghana), Bernard Foahom (Cameroon), Ernest Foli (Ghana), Steve Makungwa (Malawi),Phanuel Oballa (Kenya), Henry Utila (Malawi),and Monica Idinoba and Johnson Nkem (both of whom were at the Center for International Forestry Research during the implementation of this project). We also thank Pia Katila for assisting in content editing, Alastair Sarre for language editing and the GFEP Steering Committee for both its guidance and its approval of the publication of this policy brief.

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support and expert advice provided by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development through GTZ, the United States Forest Service, and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. Without their generous support this project would not have been realized.

A short publication such as this cannot cover every issue related to the adaptation of forests and people to climate change in Africa. Moreover, the analysis reveals that there are still major gaps in knowledge about the impacts of climate change on forests and people in Africa and about how adaptation measures can best be tailored to local conditions. Nevertheless, it is our hope that this policy brief will contribute to the development of effective adaptation strategies in Africa and facilitate related international efforts.