The Mozambican government is proposing the creation of a fund to finance initiatives for the sustainable management of the miombo forest, a biome that includes four bioregions characterised by the predominant presence of miombo species.
Budgeted at around 550 million dollars, the proposal is contained in the letter of intent that the Mozambican government submitted on Tuesday (16) to the ministerial meeting that opened the sessions of the international conference on the Sustainable and Integrated Management of the Miombo Forest.
The three-day event, which began on Tuesday in Washington, was attended by the President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi.
The signatory states of the Maputo Declaration are seeking to mobilise 550 million dollars from international partners for sustainable miombo woodland management initiatives in 11 Zambezi Basin countries.
“The ministerial session aims to assess the proposal for a letter of intent for this initiative and to define mechanisms for allocating resources for the implementation of miombo woodland initiatives, and mentions the commitment of the parties, support for public-private initiatives that stimulate sustainable development,” said the Mozambican Minister of Land and Environment, Ivete Maibasse, who took part in the ministerial meeting, quoted by TVM.
The third and final part of the proposal, according to Maibasse, defines financing mechanisms for the Miombo, the need to create a fund, or a structure for the implementation of the Maputo Declaration.
The miombo forest covers two million square kilometres and spans 11 countries in southern Africa. The conference was the result of an initiative by the Mozambican head of state, who in August 2022 brought together the leaders of ten other countries in the “Maputo Declaration on the Miombo Forest”.
The Declaration aims to promote a common approach to the sustainable and integrated management of the Miombo Forest and the protection of the Greater Zambezi Basin, and establishes priorities for the sustainable management and governance of the natural resources of the Miombo ecosystems.
The wide variety of species found in the Miombo Forest provide diversified ecosystem services and products that are considered extremely important for the livelihoods and income generation of local populations.
The growing population and the consequent increase in demand for agricultural land, combined with the unsustainable use and over-extraction of natural resources in parts of the Miombo Forest, and the impacts of climate change, pose a threat.
In addition to Mozambique, the Maputo Declaration is signed by Angola, Botswana, Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
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