Forests are the backbone of most communities in Africa. They provide food, medicines, wood and employment, and play a critical role in the fight against climate change. However, Africa’s forests are rapidly shrinking: According to Global Forest Watch, countries across Africa are losing nearly 3 million hectares of primary forest every year. Since 1950, 65% of the continent’s land has been affected by degradation, and 3% of GDP is lost annually from soil and nutrient depletion on croplands. At this rate, Africa will struggle to feed its young and growing population and adapt to climate change.

Illegal logging has particularly devastating impacts for African forests and communities. Despite its impacts, the trade of illegal timber remains one of the most pervasive types of environmental crime.

Our vision to conserve and restore forests and other natural landscapes for benefits as diverse as cultural identity, livelihoods, water security, wood supply, biodiversity and carbon capture

WRI is a managing partner of the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100), a country-led effort that aims to bring 100 million hectares of land into restoration by 2030. Through AFR100, our approach is to:

  • Provide high-quality data and analyses to inform landscape restoration and forest protection efforts.
  • Create effective partnerships among entrepreneurs, policymakers, community organizations, local stakeholders and funders to accelerate the transformation of African landscapes.
  • Prevent illegal logging and ensure sustainable forest use. We aim to create a more transparent forest sector by improving access and availability of data and information about forests and forest-risk commodity supply chains.