As a leading public fund NGO dedicated to eco-environmental protection and sustainable development, CBCGDF has the passion and ability to participate in mobilizing and helping industry colleagues, institutional leaders, stakeholders, etc. to proactively address issues that are recognized as the most important issues. This is also one of the working principles of CBCGDF, including cooperation with relevant social organizations, economic entities, etc. to promote cooperation between domestic underdeveloped regions and international developing countries, taking action to address climate change and nature conservation, and has steadily achieved results in the levels of practice and policy so far.
Recently, CBCGDF colleagues in Cameroon: "Green Climate Actions" Forest and Wildlife Engineer and Executive Director Mr. Ayemele Aurele wrote a letter to Dr. Zhou Jingfeng, the Secretary - General of CBCGDF, specifically mentioning that he and his colleagues have long admired Dr. Zhou's efforts to lead CBCGDF in domestic and international efforts to promote nature conservation and sustainable transformation. In response to a plan for their promotion of nature conservation in Cameroon, Dr. Zhou was invited to give advice and comments.
In December 2015, UNFCCC COP21 adopted the Paris Agreement. This landmark agreement in the global climate governance process is also based on the results of China-International cooperation. The national strategy for environmental protection through international cooperation also provides favorable conditions for CBCGDF to further develop international cooperation, and can further develop the advantages in the area of international cooperation of CBCGDF.
After the CoP 21, Mr. Ayemele Aurele started to write a whole programme on climate change adaptation and mitigation, based on the recommendations of the CoP 21, 22 and 23 in order to reduce greenhouse gas emission from forest degradation and deforestation, from agriculture and animal husbandry. In December 2018, UNFCCC COP24 ended. Therefore, the project aims at securing from conversion, 100 000ha of new conservation community forest land and developing incentives for conservation in order to promote alternatives local livelihoods. The new conservation community forest land will be assessed and monitored to predict it contribution in term of amount of CO2 emission avoided and wildlife habitat preserved, local poverty reduction.
Cameroon is one of the world's rich biodiversity countries, including major wildlife species. Cameroon is known as the “granary of Central Africa”. Forestry is one of the pillar industries of its national economy. Agriculture and animal husbandry are the main pillars of its national economy. Unfortunately, in recent years, Cameroon has faced rising threats of forest degradation. Between 1990 and 2010, Cameroon lost 4,400,000 ha (over a total Cameroon area of 47 540 000ha) of his forest cover at an average rate of 220,000 ha annually. This plummeting of the forest cover mainly occurred in the Non-Permanent Forest Estate (NPFE), the trend continues and is expected to be more during the upcoming years. Accordingly, drastic impacts are observed on global carbon emission, although the potential can allow to stabilize the GHG through zero net deforestation from some targeted areas. To address this situation, the first aim of this programme is to create and secure a maximum of 100,000 ha of new Conservation Community Forest (CCF) land from the NPFE with no specific status and development of incentives measures for conservation (alternatives livelihoods).
For each CCF, a 5-years simple management plan including the data of the scenario related to the avoided emission due to the programme implementation will be developed. Moreover, a reforestation plan in degraded area will also be developed. In order to support this mitigation measure, incentives like intensification of sustainable agriculture for smallholders, vulgarization of both high yield and water stress resistant crops, promotion of value chain through the valorization and transformation of agro-products (including Non-Timber Forest Product), facilitation the access to potable water, health and education in very poor rural area will be implemented.
Moreover, it has been shown that CH4 has a global warming potential (“radiative forcing”) 21 times than CO2 and contributes approximately 18% to the overall global warming effect. Animal husbandry is on top of CH4 emission (28% of the total emissions) with high producers dairy cows which dissipate up to 500L of CH4 per day. To address this critical situation, it is urgent to develop some best practices mainly related to the feeding behaviour system of cattle which can help to reduce by at least one third, the total daily CH4 emission. Moreover, these best practices will enable to significantly improve the farmer’s income, which constitutes a great incentive to implement the mitigation measure.
Goal 13 of the UN SDGs: Climate Action (Photo source: Internet)
Dr. Zhou asked IUCN Green List to Include CCAfa system at a CBD COP14 side event, the CCAfa system received wide attention. (Photo credit: enb.iisd.org)
In a side event of the CBD COP14 themed on public participation, Dr. Zhou took the CBCGDF’s efforts toward mobilizing volunteers from all walks of life to participate in eco-environmental protection and gave advice to “The future of biodiversity governance for civil society”. (Photo credit: enb.iisd.org)
Cameroon’s new conservation community forest land programme is dedicated to improving forest degradation and addressing climate change. (Photo credit: Ayemele Aurele)
Original Chinese article:
http://www.cbcgdf.org/NewsShow/4937/7321.html