Kaundjire Humbu
Namibia is planning to plant one million trees by 2030 as Government moves to strengthen the country’s response to deforestation, wildfires, drought and the continued loss of forest cover.
Environmental affairs and forestry deputy executive director and environmental commissioner Timoteus Mufeti made the announcement recently during a validation workshop on the draft National Strategy on Afforestation and Reforestation.
Mufeti said Namibia’s forests have come under increasing pressure over the years, largely due to the unsustainable harvesting of forest resources, deforestation, uncontrolled wildfires and changing climatic conditions, including drought.
“Namibia’s forest cover has decreased over the years owing to unsustainable harvesting of forest resources, deforestation, uncontrolled wildfires and climatic variability including droughts,” Mufeti said.
He added that while trees have been planted in different parts of the country over the years, these efforts have not been properly coordinated.
According to Mufeti, tree-planting activities have largely been fragmented and carried out without a central system to record the number of trees planted or measure progress nationally.
The draft strategy is therefore aimed at bringing these efforts under one coordinated national framework.
It will also provide a system for consolidating national data on tree-planting activities, allowing government to establish how much progress has been made towards its afforestation and reforestation targets.
Mufeti said the lack of reliable national data has made it difficult to properly account for the country’s tree-planting efforts.
The planned one-million-tree target is expected to bring together government institutions, communities, stakeholders and technical partners in a more coordinated effort to restore and protect Namibia’s forests.
The initiative comes as the country continues to experience harsh climatic conditions, with drought and wildfires putting additional pressure on already limited forest resources.
The validation workshop is intended to provide stakeholders with an opportunity to review and provide input on the draft strategy before it is finalised.
Forestry director Johnson Ndokosho, Botanical Research deputy director Esmerialda Klaassen and forestry regional deputy director Amon Andreas were among officials attending the workshop, alongside other stakeholders and technical partners.
The strategy is expected to guide tree-planting activities countrywide and ensure that efforts are properly documented and measured as the country works towards the 2030 target.
