Securing a Sustainable Future for the Guinean Forests

Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

Back to the list

Dates / Project duration

October 2020 - October 2023 / 37 months

Field of action :

Combating deforestation

Branch :

Monaco

Location :

São Tomé and Príncipe

Project sponsor(s) :

Birdlife International

One of 8 African biodiversity hotspots, the Guinean Forests of West Africa (over 600000km2) support globally-significant biodiversity with high species endemism, but face threats from agriculture and commodity expansion, unsustainable logging and hunting, and mineral extraction, leading to increasing deforestation rates. 2018 GFW data lists several West African nations among the highest for rates of forest loss.

BirdLife has made long-term commitments to forest conservation across the hotspot, working for many years to protect priority sites, including the Greater Gola Landscape of Sierra Leone and Liberia and Obô Natural Parks in São Tomé-et-Príncipe.

This project will contribute to this vision through development and refinement of landscape-scale sustainability models and help forest-adjacent communities adopt forest-compatible livelihoods. It will support best practice exchange between BirdLife Partners; building capacity and aligning forest initiatives across the region, ensuring lessons learned influence the global dialogue on sustainable landscape strategies.