UN urges Africa to re-strategise programmes against deforestation

The UN has called on African governments to re-strategise their programmes against deforestation and environmental degradation.

Elsie Attafuah, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)'s Africa Regional Technical Advisor for UN REDD, told the governments to incorporate integrated approaches that are aimed at benefiting communities.

"There is need to adopt approaches that promote community benefits from natural resources through sustainable land use and reduction of deforestation," Attafuah on Tuesday told the delegates attending the 2018 Africa Knowledge Exchange on tackling deforestation in Nairobi, Xinhua reported.

She said the approaches must be transformative, cohesive and aligned to nationally determined contributions (NDC) and the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) programme.

Attafuah stressed the need to involve both public and private sector collaborations to help upscale the existing limitations of existing mitigation strategies to reduce deforestation.

"The persistence of deforestation and environmental degradation in Africa has increased pressure hence the need to have both governments and companies to address these challenges," she added.

Attafuah said 28 countries have adopted REDD+ programme and most of them are getting into implementation stages.

UN-REDD Programme was launched in 2008 to provide countries that request its support with reliable and effective technical assistance, capacity building, and policy advice to help them access REDD+ financing.

Participants at the meeting were drawn from the DR Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Nigeria, Uganda and Zambia.

--IANS

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