Stakeholders brainstorm on Cross River’s vanishing rainforest reserves

From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar

Stakeholders in forest management in Cross River State have attributed the massive depletion of the state’s forest reserves to the policies of the state government.

They made this known in Calabar during a multi stakeholder conference on deforestation in Cross River State.

The conference was facilitated by We The People, the Rainforest Resource and Development Centre as well as Development Concern and aimed at ending deforestation in the state.

The conference was aimed at finding ways to end the rising level of deforestation in the state.

Logging in the state’s forests has become uncontrollable and seem to have intensified during the forest ban and REDD+, a framework developed by parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Data from REDD+ officials indicate that between 2000 and 2007, the forest loss was about 39,000ha.

However, between 2007 and 2014, in the midst of the forest ban and REDD+, the state’s forest cover declined by 107,000ha.

Speaking during the conference, Ken Henshaw from We The People said “From the creating of a super highway through the mangroves and rainforests, to building of a casino city in the mangroves forest, and concessions to massive cocoa and oil palm plantations, the government has been relentless.

“In-state actors including Chinese Nationals have joined the scramble, invading the forests and logging without restraint.

“Armed cartels provide security, bribe officials and stiffle community dissent”, he said.

He said to preserve what remains of the forests, there is need to move beyond REDD+, unilateral bans and militarized forest protection.

Also speaking, Ekpenyong Itam, a Professor of Ecological Architecture and sustainable Urbanism who spoke on “policy frameworks on Forest management in Cross River State” said the state has a problem with policy and it has not developed a policy capable of matching the present trend.

He said the state is using an obsolete policy to match the present deforestation trend and the missing link is how to empower local communities in the fight they are facing against illegal loggers.

On his part, Raphael Offiong, an associate professor who spoke on “Patterns of Deforestation In Cross River State” said deforestation in the state is becoming very serious because of land grabbing.

In his words, “Cross River forest is under very serious threat , people are logging to make ends meet and also poverty of the mind is accelerating deforestation.

“The pattern of Deforestation is extremely fast and we need to talk to our people and strengthen our traditional institutions.

“The only way to stop logging is to empower the rural poor with simple climate smart agriculture  and also degraded forest land can be restored and used for agriculture”, he said.

Presenting a keynote address at the conference, former Chairman of Cross River State Forestry Commission, Dr. Odigha Odigha said Cross River must have a leadership that has the political will to wrestle deforestation of forest reserves.

“We are faced with the most serious crisis of our life, we are faced with deforestation, it is the truth that will save us from where we are.

“We should also look at whatever policies and regulations that we have. I think we have a good law, a good policy but implementation is the issue and of cause the third issue is, there must be budget provision or something to fund this sector”, he said.

According to him, for that to happen, stakeholders in the sector must spare head the change and chat a new cause to recover the state and its resources.

On his part, John Ewa, the chairman of Boki said the state of our forest is a shame and what he sees practically is more shameless than the picture presented.

He said if the next governor of the state will not protect the forest then he has no business voting them.

“If all of us here are serious about our environment our concern should be to vote people who will protect our forest”, he said.

Earlier, Odey Oyama, the Executive Director of the Rainforest Resource and Development Centre, RRDC said the present situation in the state is widely acknowledged to be the worst that ever occured in the Cross River forest estate since the 21st century.

He said it’s important to host the conference because the destruction and rapid degradation of the forest environment is destroying the pristine and highly valued tropical high forest of the state.

He added that the destruction of the forest will ultimately reduce the state’s ability to participat e effectively in the REDD programme, the Global Climate Change  Mitigation and Mellinium Development Goals programme of the United Nations.