Deep Dive: Congo Basin CARPE

Central Africa contains the second largest contiguous moist tropical forest in the world, consisting of about 1.14 million square kilometers representing nearly 20% of the world's remaining biome of this type (the first is the Amazon Basin). It serves as a massive carbon sink for greenhouse gases, and the primary source of food, shelter and livelihoods for approximately 60 million people who live in the region. It is called the Guineo-Congolian Regional Center of Endemism because much of Africa‘s existing biological diversity originated here. An estimated 8,000 species of plants are found in this region, and about 80 percent of these are endemic – i.e., found nowhere else on earth. There is also an incredible diversity of fauna in the Congo Basin: 655 species of birds and 58 species of mammals, of which 36 and 45 percent are endemic (respectively), make their homes here. Of these, many – 16 bird species and 23 species of mammals – are considered endangered or threatened. Additionally, the world‘s largest populations of charismatic mega fauna like lowland gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos (pygmy chimpanzees), and forest elephants are found in this important region.

The Problem: Two main problems faced by the Congo Basin are:

1. Conflict and poor governance: The Congo Basin has experienced internal and international conflict, as well as upheaval and poor governance over the past decades, such as bloody conflicts in Rwanda, Burundi, and ROC. The sources of the conflict are complex and historic but are often fueled by rivalry over natural resources including minerals and forest products. This conflict throughout the region has had a devastating effect on both human and wildlife populations over sizeable areas, as large displacements of their populations have occurred in many parts of the basin and surrounding areas
2. Unsustainable exploitation of forest resources: due to extensive logging, agricultural expansion, extractive industries, uncontrolled bush meat and wildlife trade, and other forces.

Solution:
Global recognition of the importance of the forests in the Congo Basin and the plant and animal species present within them grew, which created the impetus for the Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE) - USAID’s largest land management program in Africa and an important effort to preserve the Congo Basin’s ecosystem. CARPE http://carpe.umd.edu/ began in 1995, following years of discussion, debate and planning,

CARPE currently operates in six countries: the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Republic of Congo, Central African Republic (CAR), Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. In these countries, a total of 12 designated areas are priorities given their ecological makeup and potential to impact animals, plants, and people alike. It is the major U.S. contribution to the Congo Basin Forest Partnership.  The partnership brings together member states, donor agencies, international organizations, NGOs, scientific institutions and private sector representatives. It currently has 48 members who share the commitment to enhance communication and coordination among the members and to create synergies between their respective projects, programs and policies.

CARPE‘s Strategic Objective is to reduce the rate of forest degradation and loss of biodiversity An evaluation of the second sub-phase (CARPE II from 2005 to 2010) was carried out which is the main source for this section. http://carpe.umd.edu/Documents/2010/ECODIT_CARPE_II_Evaluation_Final_Report_for_USAID.pdf

In its initial phase, CARPE focused on two main areas:

1. Building an information base regarding the region‘s natural resources; and
2. Increasing the capacities of local Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Community-Based organizations through a small grants program.

Information base:

• An accurate, remote-sensing-based monitoring system for deforestation and sets of useful cloud-free imagery of each landscape has been developed through the joint efforts of National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA), the University of Maryland (UMD), and South Dakota State University (SDSU). The information base is now sufficient to use the system for measuring the deforestation rates in the CARPE landscapes since the beginning of CARPE II in 2005. This database, and the ability to use it, is being institutionalized through a regional organization, Observatoire Satellital des Forêts d’Afrique Central (OSFAC – Satellite Observatory of the Central African Forests).
• The evaluation concludes that CARPE has not been successful in developing monitoring systems for forest degradation or for the bush meat trade. Although the World Resources Institute (WRI) has been very successful in supporting the development of forest information systems in the forest service of several countries and in the development of a system for monitoring the expansion of forest roads as an indicator of potential sites of illegal, industrial, mechanized logging, no adequate systems for the monitoring of artisanal forms of illegal logging have been developed.
• Updating online atlases of protected areas, community forests, and forest concessions for Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Central African Republic and Gabon. The atlases support each country’s land use planning efforts that will reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.
• A primary forest alert system with EMAPS partners that is being pilot tested in six landscapes within the DRC to identify and monitor areas where rapid land cover change is occurring.
• A system for tracking wildfire occurrences that is being tested within three landscapes in DRC.

Capacity building: Training nearly 8,200 people in conservation and climate change mitigation, management, monitoring, and governance skills.

Source for the above content is from : http://carpe.umd.edu/Documents/2015/CARPE_EMAPS_Factsheet_508.pdf