The Maputo Declaration<\/a> issued in August, also known as the Miombo Initiative, now looks to halt and address the threats to the biome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe declaration was drafted to deliver three key objectives,\u201d said Claudio Afonso, national director of forestry at Mozambique\u2019s Ministry of Land and Environment. \u201cNamely, to promote miombo forest management for climate resilience and community development; to protect miombo forests as a carbon sink to ensure emission reductions for the regional NDCs [nationally determined contributions to the Paris climate agreement]; and to conserve miombo forests to save the Zambezi Basin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The nine countries to sign the declaration are Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, which will serve as the Miombo Initiative\u2019s focal point. South Africa is not home to miombo woodlands but is included because of its experience in forestry management, according to Afonso.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Across central and southern Africa, miombo woodlands contribute to erosion reduction, climate and microclimate regulation, and mitigation of and adaptation to climate change through carbon sequestration. They are also responsible for maintaining the greater Zambezi Basin \u2013 one of the most important transboundary river basins<\/a> in southern Africa, which coincides with much of the miombo woodlands\u2019 range.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A 2014 study<\/a> on the significance of miombo woodlands detailed how they support biodiversity and contribute to the global carbon balance, sequestering between 0.5 and 0.9 tonnes of carbon per hectare per\u00a0year, with increased sequestration in young miombo trees. The study explained how miombo woodlands can increase resilience against the impacts of floods, droughts and other extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many miombo areas are tourist attractions, as they provide a habitat for popular \u2013 and often endangered \u2013 animal species, including rhinos, elephants, giraffes and lions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps most importantly, the UN\u2019s Food and Agricultural Organization<\/a> estimates that miombo forests support the livelihoods of more than 100 million rural people and 50 million urban residents through their provision of various non-timber forest products, such as insects, mushrooms, honey, fruits, tubers, seeds, medicine and wood fuels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But miombo woodlands are under threat. In the 15 years between 2006 and 2021, the miombo woodland area has decreased from 2.7 million km2<\/sup> to 1.9 million km2<\/sup>, according to the Maputo Declaration. The woodlands are under pressure due to cutting of trees for timber and charcoal, mining and the practice of shifting agriculture. In a region with widespread energy poverty, reliance on the woodlands for firewood and charcoal is a key driver<\/a> of deforestation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Tanzania, for example, where around 93% of the country\u2019s total forest cover consists of miombo woodlands, deforestation and degradation has reached an average of 400,000 hectares per year, Professor Dos Santos Silayo, chief executive of the Tanzania Forest Services Agency told China Dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The critical significance of the miombo woodlands and their spread across national boundaries, coupled with the threats they are facing, has moved the nine countries to embark on their joint conservation initiative, forestry director Afonso said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Speaking at the signing of the Maputo Declaration, Mozambican president Filipe Jacinto Nyusi emphasised<\/a> that miombo woodlands conservation is of \u201ccollective interest, for the good of the people and the planet\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cClimate change does not respect borders,\u201d President Nyusi added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Southern Africa Development Community\u2019s Protocol on Forestry<\/a> notes that miombo is of immense value to communities and countries. But much as the Miombo Initiative is regional, it also aspires to play a part in broader continental and global environmental goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The stated aim of the initiative is \u201cto leverage the capacities and alliances of the African continent, to jointly and decisively use and manage miombo woodlands sustainably to achieve the objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development\u2026 the African Union Agenda 2063, the nationally determined contributions (NDCs), and those called for in the 2014 New York Declaration on Forests at the Climate Summit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Afonso said the implementation of the initiative would be a secure and assured way for the southern Africa region to work towards achieving the climate mitigation and adaptation goals proposed in the African Union\u2019s (AU\u2019s) new Climate Change Strategy<\/a> and Agenda 2063<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe two AU documents place emphasis on a number of issues that have been adequately addressed in the Maputo Declaration,\u201d Afonso said. He highlighted its mention of issues such as modern agricultural practices to increase productivity; sustainable natural resource management and biodiversity conservation; the building of environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient economies and communities; and the promotion of renewable energy use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among the targets of the initiative are expanding emissions reduction schemes via the REDD+ programme; diversifying income sources from timber and non-timber forest products; reducing illegal trade in flora and fauna products; and promoting programmes of education and knowledge sharing on forest management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are as yet few numerical or measurable targets laid out under the Maputo Declaration, nor much clarity on funding for implementation. However, according to Afonso, these will be determined in an action plan set by a new regional commission for sustainable miombo woodland management, to be released and approved within a year of the declaration\u2019s adoption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the improvement of technologies<\/a> to aid and enhance forest management, Afonso said this will be achieved through research and outreach from regional universities and research institutions. He highlighted the role South Africa can play in this field, as the most technologically advanced country in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the main actions ahead for the initiative include the establishment of the new regional commission and the approval of its strategy for the implementation of the Maputo Declaration. Afonso said the main goals stipulated in the declaration will be evaluated in a midterm review in 2027, and again as the initiative\u2019s initial 10-year phase reaches its end in 2032.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Afonso told China Dialogue that interim coordination of the initiative is being led by the President of Mozambique and assisted by the ministers of environmental affairs of the member countries, until the regional commission is founded and functioning. The forestry director was optimistic on the broader backing the initiative will receive: \u201cThere will be mobilisation of technical and financial support for the implementation of the initiative as part of Africa\u2019s climate action effort.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Prosper Tonderai Mataruse, a doctoral candidate in social-ecological systems and development practice at the University of Zimbabwe, highlighted funding as a potential major challenge for the initiative. He said substantial funds will be needed for member countries to effectively monitor and control the exploitation of resources in miombo woodlands, and planting saplings also requires funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is a long-standing problem not only in southern Africa,\u201d Mataruse told China Dialogue, citing the UN Convention on Biological Diversity\u2019s failure to establish<\/a> a dedicated financing mechanism for biodiversity protection in Montreal last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Afonso, however, is optimistic that in the next three to five years, the Miombo Initiative will raise the necessary funds through investment projects financing<\/a> (IPF), in cooperation with partners such as the World Bank, African Development Bank, European Union, Asian Bank and Islamic Bank. \u201cThe timeframe for fundraising is for the next three years, starting from 2022 to 2025. The initiative\u2019s first phase is from 2022 to 2032, with a possible extension for another 10 years from 2032.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another major challenge will be to ensure communities\u2019 dependency on the woodlands can be sustainable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere is high dependence on miombo forests,\u201d said Dr Robertson Khataza, head of the Forestry Department at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources in Malawi. \u201cMore than 70% of the population in the region rely on wood fuel, in the form of firewood, and charcoal as the primary household energy source for cooking and heating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A critical path to establishing sustainable use and conservation of the wooldands is therefore by providing diversified means of living and income generation to the woodlands\u2019 most dependent local communities, Khataza told China Dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA range of anti-poverty and economic empowerment programmes such as improved agricultural technologies to enhance productivity, sustainable business programmes, and alternative energy options should be promoted among forest-dependent communities,\u201d he said. \u201cThis would require more partners and stakeholders, and stronger partnerships to make conservation financing a reality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr Khataza also proposes that the initiative should enhance environmentally friendly conditional cash transfers to tackle poverty and build household resilience to shocks: \u201cSocial cash transfer programmes or safety nets should be conditional on conservation practices such as tree planting, and care to stimulate positive attitudes towards sound environmental stewardship.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lastly, at the political level, Professor Silayo of the Tanzanian forestry agency noted that member countries\u2019 commitment to the initiative may vary, based on their respective national priorities, policies and economic power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mataruse similarly highlighted that differences in terms of interests and priorities between member states could derail the initiative\u2019s progress. He emphasised that the processes put in place by the regional committee and the strategy for implementing the Maputo Declaration will be important for keeping member states\u2018 commitment on track.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhy a cross-border conservation initiative?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Map](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/20230314_Miombo-woodlands_v2.svg\")
<\/div>![\"A](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/51220367388_Miombo-woodland-carrying-charcoal.jpg\")
<\/div>![\"Bundles](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/51220914059_Miombo-woodland-charcoal-piles.jpg\")
<\/div>Setting the targets and deadlines<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/36191335385_Miombo-woodland-landscape-view.jpg\")
<\/div>![\"A](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/51221226260_Miombo-woodland-sapling-regeneration.jpg\")
<\/div>Anticipated challenges<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/51220367113_Miombo-woodland-cattle.jpg\")
<\/div>![\"Two](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/51220364093_Miombo-woodland-women-sell-charcoal.jpg\")
<\/div>