{"id":13024,"date":"2026-06-20T12:26:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:26:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/conservation-of-africas-forest-offers-great-benefits\/"},"modified":"2026-06-20T12:26:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:26:13","slug":"conservation-of-africas-forest-offers-great-benefits","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/conservation-of-africas-forest-offers-great-benefits\/","title":{"rendered":"Conservation of Africas forest offers great benefits"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"undisturbed<\/a>
The 43-year old undisturbed 350 hectare forest at IITA.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preserving Africa\u2019s surviving tropical forests and planting new trees to replace those lost to deforestation could help reduce the severity of climate change by absorbing more carbon from the air, and ease the local impact of climate change by regulating local weather conditions, scientists have said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also cite the forests\u2019 roles as watersheds, defences against soil erosion and conservation pools for biodiversity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the United Nation\u2019s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), indigenous forests in Africa are being cut down at an \u2018alarming\u2019 rate of about 3.4 million hectares per year, making the continent the region with the second highest net annual loss of forests in 2000-2010.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But reforestation and education on the benefits of conservation are critical to stemming and reclaiming Africa\u2019s lost forest and biodiversity, says Dr. John Peacock, who is manager of the IITA – Leventis Foundation Project, during the 2010 Open Day held on November 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2010 Open Day was marked with the planting of indigenous trees by IITA staff in Ibadan to help mitigate the effects of climate change and losses in biodiversity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The planting of trees comes at a time when deforestation rate in Nigeria\u2014Africa\u2019s most populous black nation\u2014 has reached an alarming rate of 3.5% per year, translating to a loss of 350,000\u2013400,000 hectares of forest per year. In 1976, Nigeria had 23 million ha of forest; today only 9.6 million ha remain\u2014less than 10% of Nigeria\u2019s total l and area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peacock says the planting of trees is part of a new initiative to restore rainforests in Nigeria. IITA is also contributing to the important UN-REDD (R<\/strong>educing E<\/strong>missions from D<\/strong>eforestation and Forest D<\/strong>egradation) initiative in Nigeria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the IITA-Leventis Project, the team, particularly Olukunle Olasupo and Deni Bown, have raised over 15,000 seedlings of 33 different species since February 2010 in preparation for planting next year, with at least as many again hoped for during the coming dry season when most tree species produce seeds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe would like every family, represented by staff members in IITA, to plant an indigenous tree next year as part of IITA\u2019s activities to increase the forest area,\u201d Peacock adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this year, IITA and partners made efforts to raise awareness of the need to preserve biodiversity\u2014a term that describes the variety of living organisms\u2014especially in forests that are increasingly becoming lost or threatened. For example, statistics indicate that Nigeria\u2019s Milicia<\/em> excelsa<\/em> (iroko) has become endangered, with about $100 million worth of iroko timber illegally poached from remaining forests last year. \u201cThe unfortunate thing is that these very valuable trees are not being replaced,\u201d Peacock notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the years IITA has championed efforts not only to increase crop productivity but also the conservation of biodiversity and natural resources including water and forest. Today, the 1000 ha at IITA Ibadan campus is taken up by research, administration, and residential buildings, lakes and experimental plots, and a further 350 ha comprises valuable secondary forest. This forest can be compared to an oasis in the desert and is dominated by a canopy that includes fine specimens of Milicia excelsa (iroko)<\/em>, Ceiba pent andra<\/em> (silk cotton tree), Celtis zenkeri (ita-gidi)<\/em>, Terminalia (afara)<\/em>, et Antiaris toxicaria var. africana (akiro)<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1979, an arboretum was established comprising 152 different tree species, 81 of which are indigenous. Peacock says the IITA-Leventis Project plans to increase the forest area and the IITA arboretum with the planting of more indigenous trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another area of importance to the project is education, particularly of school children, says Deni Bown, project coordinator and medicinal plant expert with the IITA-Leventis Project. \u201cIn this regard we are educating the young on the importance of afforestation and conservation,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peacock and his team are hopeful that through reforestation and education, the rate of deforestation in Nigeria in particular and Africa in general will be significantly reduced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

###<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pour plus d'informations, veuillez contacter :<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Peacock, j.peacock@cgiar.org<\/a>
Manager, IITA – Leventis Foundation Project<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Godwin Atser, g.atser@cgiar.org<\/a>
Charg\u00e9(e) de la communication d'entreprise (Afrique de l'Ouest et Centrale)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jeffrey T. Oliver, o.jeffrey@cgiar.org<\/a>
Charg\u00e9 de communication d'entreprise (international)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bureau de la communication
IITA \u2013 Si\u00e8ge
Ibadan, Nig\u00e9ria<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IITA \u2013 Si\u00e8ge<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ibadan, Nig\u00e9ria<\/p>\n\n\n\n

URL : www.iita.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00c0 propos de l'IITA<\/strong>
L'Afrique est confront\u00e9e \u00e0 des probl\u00e8mes complexes qui minent l'agriculture et la vie des populations. Nous d\u00e9veloppons des solutions agricoles avec nos partenaires pour lutter contre la faim et la pauvret\u00e9. Nos recherches pour le d\u00e9veloppement (R4D), maintes fois r\u00e9compens\u00e9es, reposent sur une r\u00e9flexion cibl\u00e9e et autoris\u00e9e, ancr\u00e9e dans les besoins de d\u00e9veloppement de l'Afrique subsaharienne. Nous travaillons avec des partenaires en Afrique et au-del\u00e0 pour r\u00e9duire les risques pour les producteurs et les consommateurs, am\u00e9liorer la qualit\u00e9 et la productivit\u00e9 des cultures, et g\u00e9n\u00e9rer de la richesse gr\u00e2ce \u00e0 l'agriculture. L'IITA est une organisation internationale de R4D \u00e0 but non lucratif cr\u00e9\u00e9e en 1967, dirig\u00e9e par un Conseil d'administration et soutenue principalement par le CGIAR.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Preserving Africa\u2019s surviving tropical forests and planting new trees to replace those lost to deforestation could help reduce the severity of climate change by absorbing more carbon from the air, and ease the local impact of climate change by regulating local weather conditions, scientists have said.<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"tags":[],"science-area":[],"program":[],"location":[32],"news-type":[],"hub":[],"crop":[],"impact-areas":[],"item-year":[188],"class_list":["post-13024","news-item","type-news-item","status-publish","hentry","location-nigeria","item-year-188"],"yoast_head":"\nConservation of Africas forest offers great benefits - 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