Community forestry stakeholders in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) met recently to discuss options for making forest concessions profitable for local communities. These discussions aim to help communities improve their living conditions while sustainably managing the forest resources they own.
The process of managing forest concessions requires the drafting of a simple management plan, which will allow communities to exploit the resources in a regulated manner. During the meeting, participants shared ideas on profitable activities for communities, while minimizing environmental impacts. Among the options mentioned are the exploitation of artisanal timber, sustainable agriculture, agroforestry, food crops, fishing, among others.
The objective of this support approach is to enable communities to control the resources at their disposal, while taking into account the socio-economic and environmental aspects. The actors involved in this process stressed the importance of providing technical support to the communities, helping them to interpret the regulatory texts and building their capacities.
It is also underlined that community forestry in the DRC is still at the experimental stage, but it is hoped that the exchanges during this meeting will allow actors to be better equipped in their work to support local communities.
It should be noted that the process of obtaining the forest title is initiated by the communities themselves, who assert their need and their legitimacy through sharing of experience with the various structures involved in the process.
To conclude, the meeting of community forestry actors in the DRC made it possible to share good practices and reflect on profitability options for forest concessions for the benefit of local communities. The ultimate goal is to enable communities to sustainably manage their forest resources and improve their living conditions