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As Sociedade de Desenvolvimento
Rural’s ( SDR’s) next rural project, we are studying
how to implement sustainable forestry. Mozambique
is home to many different species of desirable hardwoods
such as Aformosia, Umbila, Afzelia, Brown Ivory,
African Sandalwood and Monzo.
The country has many valuable hardwood forests in
existence but they are being deforested at the astonishing
rate of 1% per annum. If this deforestation continues
at this rate in 100 years there would potentially
be no hardwood forests left. This is the same phenomenon
that is allowing the Sahara to spread. Deforestation
is an underlying cause of global warming, the biggest
crisis of our generation. Illegal harvesting of
hardwoods by local communities for “charcoal” and
unsustainable forestry practices by Chinese companies
is the cause of this problem for Mozambique.
The practice of sustainable forestry, i.e. planting
and then harvesting, is taking hold in Sub-Saharan
Africa. SDR believes this is an important project
that will have the same benefits of empowering rural
communities and promoting the conservation of the
fauna and flora found within the hardwood forests.
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