Vice-President Kashim Shettima and former Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo are set to lead business, philanthropic, development finance and government leaders in a major push to unlock Africa’s estimated $1.2 trillion forest economy by 2050.
The high-level meeting, scheduled to hold in Lagos on Tuesday, is being organised by the African Forest Forum (AFF) in collaboration with the Sustainable Forest Management Champions for Africa Initiative.
The roundtable will focus on mobilising long-term private and philanthropic capital to support sustainable management and economic development of Africa’s forests.
Shettima is expected to open the meeting, while Osinbajo, who chairs the Sustainable Forest Management Champions for Africa Initiative, will deliver remarks and outline the way forward.
According to the AFF, the continent’s forests could generate an estimated $1.2 trillion in economic value by 2050 if African countries effectively implement sustainable forest management and forest-based bioeconomy models.
However, the forum said Africa recorded an average annual net forest loss of about 3.9 million hectares between 2010 and 2020, while investment in sustainable forest management remains fragmented and inadequate.
The meeting, titled High-Level Business and Philanthropic Leaders Roundtable: Investing in Africa’s Forest Future, will also examine partnerships to support the proposed African Forestry Trust Fund.
The fund is being developed as an African-led financing mechanism to mobilise catalytic public, private and philanthropic capital for sustainable forest management and forest-based economic development.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Chair of the AFF Governing Council, Prof. Larwanou Mahamane; and Director of Sustainable Environment and Blue Economy at the African Union Commission, Harsen Nyambe, are also expected to participate.
The AFF Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Prof. Labode Popoola, will present the investment case for the proposed African Forestry Trust Fund.
The forum said Africa has about 637 million hectares of forests, representing approximately 16 per cent of the world’s forest area, with the sector supporting the livelihoods of more than 400 million people.
Africa also has about 446 million hectares of other wooded land, with its forests providing resources and economic opportunities across timber, non-timber forest products, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, renewable energy, nature-based tourism, climate-smart agriculture, carbon markets and biodiversity markets.
The AFF said closing the financing gap would require a shift away from short-term, project-based funding towards long-term investments involving governments, private-sector players, philanthropic organisations and development finance institutions.
Keynote presentations will be delivered virtually by Stefan Schepers, Executive Director, High-Level Groups on EU Policy Innovation, Centre Condorcet, Brussels, and Prof. Jeffrey Sachs, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
A high-level panel, “Africa’s Green Wealth: How Private Capital Can Shape Africa’s Forest Future,” will also examine how private capital can help develop the continent’s forest economy.
