By Joyce Ojanji
As the world prepares for the 2024 United Nations conferences on climate, biodiversity and desertification, experts at the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) Africa 2024 Hybrid Conference emphasized the need for African solutions in the restoration of landscapes in the continent.
“There is a need to decolonize how we do climate justice and land restoration. Whatever has happened on other continents, whatever the donors and the granters are saying might not be the solution for Africa. There is a need for Africa to come up with African solutions,” said Deborah Oyugi, English Countries Manager and Safeguarding Lead at Youth Initiative for Land in Africa (Yilaa).
She noted that there is a need for women to be involved in coming up with solutions to land issues that are upon them.
“As we bring in new tools and approaches, we should look at how best to integrate them into the existing functional systems so that we don’t start from zero or distort what is ongoing on the land. We don’t want to work in isolation; we want to strengthen that system,” said Elijah Mboko, National Technical Specialist at Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Kenya.
According to Catherine Nakalembe, Associate Research Professor at the University of Maryland and Africa Program Director at NASA Harvest there is a need to design systems that are appropriate for the context of Africa.
“ We need data from the places that we’re trying to understand to build better models. Let’s say, for western Kenya, we need a context-aware model that can interpret intercropping in small-scale practices,” she said.
Eliane Ubalijoro, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF) noted that though the climate crisis presents immense challenges, Africa holds immense potential of rich local and Indigenous knowledge, innovative solutions, youth leaders, brilliant minds and emerging technologies.
“Together, we have the power to green Africa and beyond – for securing livelihoods, food security, climate resilience and biodiversity conservation. Land and community are the common denominators for achieving these goals,’’ she said.
The GLF Africa 2024 Hybrid Conference: Greening the African Horizon, convened thousands of participants from local communities, Indigenous Peoples, youth leaders and policymakers to scientists, innovators and private-sector actors across the globe to showcase Africa’s immense potential to construct a resilient, equitable future through its landscapes.
