The Green Climate Fund has approved a $29.7 million grant for a seven-year forest project in Cameroon, the International Union for Conservation of Nature announced on October 27. With contributions from Cameroon and IUCN, the planned investment totals $46 million.
The project will work across the Waza, Dja-Lobéké and Bakossi-Bamboutos landscapes. Its goals include bringing 50,000 hectares of forest under sustainable management and restoring another 10,008 hectares through agroforestry, reforestation and natural regeneration.
More than 2.3 million people live in and around Cameroon’s Permanent Forest Areas, according to IUCN. Project plans include developing markets for products such as bush mango, bitter kola and cashew, so communities can earn income from standing and restored forests.
These are targets for a newly approved project, not completed results. IUCN estimates it could reach nearly 198,000 direct beneficiaries and more than 1.3 million indirectly, while avoiding or capturing about 2.47 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent over 20 years.
