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Forest conservation in Somaliland
Posted on October 27, 2010 at 07:25:56 PM by mb4

Forest conservation in Somaliland

From ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT IN SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT IN EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA

Hezron Mogaka, Gacheke Simons, Jane Turpie, Lucy Emerton and Francis Karanja

15.1 An Overview

Full-text 153 pages

Forest conservation in Somaliland encompasses a range of natural vegetation which are characterised by small pockets of riverine high forests, deciduous bushland and rangeland and small remnants of conifer woodland. In the recent past, forest resources are increasingly under pressure due to population increase, limited alternative means of
livelihood, and lack of formal and effective management plans. Efforts to address these challenges are uncoordinated particularly in the absence of effective government institutions or other recognised mechanisms through which action plans and strategies on forest conservation may be addressed. Therefore an intervention in natural resource management should be in the context of husbanding a scarce wood resource in an arid and harsh climate without meaningful support from any formal government institutions.

15.2 Historical profile of forest23 conservation in Somaliland

One may not adequately address present forest conservation activities in Somaliland without taking into consideration those that were formulated and implemented by the Democratic Republic of Somalia. Since early 1990’s there has been no recognised government for the former Democratic Republic of Somalia. The political instability and social unrest which has prevailed in the former Republic of Somalia have adversely affected forest conservation activities. However, serious forest conservation challenges are noted to date back to over 80 years when the Italian Government used coercive approaches to fix mobile sand dunes. Local communities who were the main source of labour resisted this approach and since then forestry within the country assumed a largely exploitative trend. Riverine forests were mainly felled for timber while cutting of the bushlands supplied materials for the charcoal production industry. Tapping of the Boswelia species for frankincense has been carried out for several years.24

Although the colonial Italian Administration in the years 1915 to 1940 had interest in forestry (although community needs were not explicitly addressed), these efforts were curtailed by the second world war. At this point the Somalia nation was divided between five states; the Ogaden, Djbouti, Northern Frontier District of Kenya, Italian Somalia and the Somaliland Protectorate. This review therefore attempts to describe and analyse forest activities within the Somaliland Protectorate. Due to lack of data and information, the nature and extent of forest activities in the region can only be at the very general level.

15.3 Forest conservation within the Somaliland region

Although there are no formal institutions to guide forest conservation plans, there is abundant knowledge base on the conservation and management of forest resources. Since the collapse of the Democratic Republic of Somalia, there has been increased interest in the development of forest and tree resources within Somaliland region. Some of the on-going activities were started prior to 1990 and they concentrated on the establishment of small-scale fuelwood plantations particularly close to population centres (e.g., Berbera, Burco, Ceerigoabo, Las Caanood and also refugee camps). Other on-going interventions that were initiated prior to 1991 include afforestation activities aimed at arresting mobile sand dunes. Small-scale tree management activities are also being carried with fruit and amenity tree planting in village.

Forest resources play a major role in supporting both subsistence and cash-based economies of the rural population in Somaliland. Tree resources form the main source of energy (over 80% of the region’s energy needs are met by wood), construction materials, source of protein, fodder for livestock and traditional medicines. Trade in gums and resins dates back to over 2000 years still remains important today. Nuts from Cordeauxia edulis form an integral component of the local diet and also the foliage from this tree is an important source of dry season fodder for their livestock. Fodder is highly regarded by communities and this is due to the support it provides to the livestock economy (it is estimated that livestock production accounts for over 75% of all exports). Given the absence of formal forest planning and management institutions, local community management systems have played an important role in the current status of forest and tree resources in Somaliland.

With the assistance of external institutions and/or donor agencies, notably the World Food Programme), attempts have been made to establish rain-fed plantations to reduce the current gap between the levels of demand and supply. However, the success of these interventions is questionable given that establishment and maintenance costs are
prohibitively high and growth rates too slow.

Challenges facing forest and tree development in Somaliland

There are a number of challenges facing forestry and tree development in Somaliland and they include;

* High establishment costs,
* Harsh ecological conditions leading to poor survival rates,
* Lack of technical capacity on natural resource management, and
* Lack of data for effective forest planning and tree management.
* Uncertainty over tree resource ownership

For example due to the harsh nature of the climatic and ecological conditions, little efforts have been directed at domestication of tree species25.

Measures in place that stimulate forest degradation

Wealth status in Somaliland is measured through the number of livestock (cattle, camels, sheep and goats) families own. This attitude towards wealth class has an had a negative impact on the status of vegetation and tree cover. Land laws inherited from the former Democratic Republic of Somalia are still operational. For example, the law required that land considered for ownership be ‘developed’ and this was taken to mean cutting of the trees and bushes which lead and still leads to widespread destruction of bushland and other tree cover.

23 What may be described at a true forest is the juniper forest although found in few localities. It has also been largely destroyed by over-grazing.
24 See for example, Bowen, M. R. 1989.
25 A few frankincense producing trees have been established.





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