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En Afrique centrale, la dégradation forestière et la déforestation ont principalement lieu dans le complexe rural, constitué d'une mosaïque agricole et arborée. La restauration et la pérennisation de ces espaces passe par des actions avec et pour les populations locales. Les expériences passées montrent : (i) un besoin d'intégrer la diversité des acteurs afin de proposer des solutions adaptées aux bénéficiaires ciblés, (ii) l'importance des bénéfices économiques à court et moyen terme pour que les populations locales s'impliquent vraiment dans les initiatives de restauration forestières et (iii) la nécessité de penser au-delà des logiques actuelles de projets. La présente note recommande ainsi que les futures initiatives de restauration forestière intègrent les populations locales d'Afrique centrale dans leur multiplicité et soient en mesure de proposer des appuis techniques diversifiés, adaptés aux conditions locales et offrant des opportunités économiques aux bénéficiaires. Il est aussi recommandé de travailler sur le temps long à l'émergence de conditions économiques et de modèles de gouvernance à même de pérenniser les interventions. Enfin, il est également recommandé de développer la capitalisation à partir des initiatives passées et en cours.

Résultat d'une journée thématique et de réflexions d'un groupe de travail sur la Restauration des Paysages Forestiers (GT-RPF), cette note vise à compléter les très nombreux travaux existants sur le sujet, en faisant notamment ressortir les points critiques en matière d'opérationnalisation de l'approche.

Ce guide pratique a été produit dans le cadre de la composante 2 " Elaboration de mesures locales de régénération et de reboisement des espèces ligneuses et d'agroforesterie " du projet, mise en oeuvre par le Centre de coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD).

Ce guide pratique a été produit dans le cadre de la composante 2 " Elaboration de mesures locales de régénération et de reboisement des espèces ligneuses et d'agroforesterie " du projet, mise en oeuvre par le Centre de coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD).

Les réunions à Camagüey ont permis aux partenaires impliqués dans les projets PRODEGAN et PROLAIF, ainsi qu'aux représentant MINAG, INAF, Université, AFD et Cirad, de décrire les objectifs et l'état des réalisations du projet PRODEGAN (très retardé par la crise mondiale liée au Covid) et d'indiquer le programme de finition du projet. D'autre part, ont été présentés et discutés les objectifs du PROLAIF, le contenu des fiches rédigées par le Cirad et par les partenaires cubains et des discussions ont été entamées en vue de trouver des consensus. Les réunions du 10 avril ont permis de présenter les fiches de travail aux responsables du Minag et de l'Inaf de la Havane et de faire valider les modifications proposées suite à l'atelier de Camagüey. La journée du 12 avril a été consacrée à l'Atelier de lancement officiel du projet ProLaif, en présence des représentants de l'état Cubain, de la France, de l'Union Européenne, de l'AFD et des différentes institutions concernées par le projet. Lors des réunions à Camagüey et à la Havane, les partenaires et leurs tutelles se sont accordées sur le fait que l'essentiel des travaux de recherche devrait se faire au profit des petits agro- éleveurs, en utilisant des pratiques agro-écologiques, parmi lesquelles le sylvo-pastoralisme. En particulier, concernant la cartographie et l'évaluation des peuplements de Marabú, il sera important d'essayer d'identifier les zones de Marabú où se trouve déjà un sur-étage d'espèces arborées et les zones sylvo-pastorales existantes. Concernant, les travaux sur la reforestation et la valorisation post-Marabú, il faudra décrire de façon fine les pratiques des éleveurs qui ont cherché à restaurer les pâturages après coupe du Marabú, en cherchant les raisons de la réussite ou de l'échec, en mettant l'accent sur la caractérisation des peuplements arborés présents sélectionnés par RNA. Concernant le reboisement, il faudra, en priorité, installer des dispositifs pour évaluer les meilleures possibilités pour

Method: Reaching the end of his career, R. Peltier presents a brief balance sheet of the action-research activities he has carried out with many colleagues. Results: The greatest failure was the dissemination of Acacia senegal fallows. Although very successful on Cameroonian research stations (at 15 years, production of 1200 kg/ha of gum and 40 m3/ha of wood-energy, improvement of the CEC, C, N & pH in the soil, doubling of maize production and tripling of cotton production compared to continuous cultivation), the practice was rarely adopted by farmers due to the failure to set up income-generating gum arabic value chains (organic or fair trade). Mediocre results (good successes but very localised) were obtained in planting live-fences and densifying trees on anti-erosion strips by sowing (Borassus aethiopum), planting (neem, various acacias) and Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR) with various local species, including Combretaceae, Baobab, Shea-tree. The same applies to the planting of local and exotic fruit trees in orchards and wood-producing trees in farmers' micro-groves. The best results were obtained for the enrichment of parklands with Faidherbia albida by subsidising ANR to the tune of 0.2 USD / plant kept for 3 years, i.e. 20 USD for 100 trees/ha. This enabled over one million trees to be saved in North-Cameroon, but selection slows sharply when the subsidy is no longer available as the benefits are only perceptible in the long term. The situation is similar in Dallol Dosso in Niger. Discussion: While the clearing of wooded savannahs has increased significantly, particularly in the region of North-Cameroon (40% in 40 years), tree-densification has occurred on formerly degraded areas. Conclusion: It is clear that land tenure security, and the provision of technical assistance and subsidies, are decisive for the development of agroforestry innovations, but more socio-economic studies are needed to better understand the determinants of the restoration of degr

Environmental services of agroforestry have been emphasised during last decade, such as carbon sequestration and biodiversity maintenance, and priorities given in the last climate COP 26 and IUCN summit reinforce these aspects. Other services, such as shade provision and soil improvement, water and pest management, are also highlighted. Wood production, be it fuelwood and charcoal, timber and lumber production, arts and crafts, is still critical for a large part of rural and urban populations in many African countries. Present agroforestry systems plays a large role in wood production. Improved agroforestry systems, such as cocoa agroforestry systems or planted fallows, could increase sustainable wood production, and could contribute to decrease pressure on natural forests, complementary to forest plantations. Examples of improved agroforestry systems developed in some West (Ivory Coast) and Central African (Cameroun, Congo Republic, Democratic Congo Republic) confirms the potential of such agroforestry systems for wood production, complementary to sustainable food production. Integration of fast growing trees, mainly nitrogen fixing trees (local or introduced species, such as acacia mangium) in agroforestry systems, as part of fallow systems, present many advantages: wood and charcoal production, soil nitrogen and organic fertility improvement, revenues for small peasants. These systems could be managed at peasant level without high investments. They could contribute to wood and charcoal supply for rural and urban population, including cities such as Abidjan, Brazzaville or Kinshasa. Traditional cocoa production systems have been developed under natural forest shade, integrating some timber trees. Present strategies intend to develop “zero deforestation” and sustainable cocoa production; integration of various tree species in cocoa farms contribute to adapted micro climate, but could also contribute to timber and lumber production, with adapted management. Wood pro

La demande de bois augmente partout dans le monde et cette tendance va inévitablement s'accélérer durant le XXIe siècle pour les débouchés traditionnels, mais aussi les secteurs de la construction (36 % des émissions de gaz à effet de serre), de la bioénergie, de la chimie verte et de toutes les industries qui chercheront progressivement à se biosourcer et à se décarboner dans le cadre de l'avènement d'une économie verte durable et relocalisée près de ses ressources et des marchés locaux.

Background: In the traditional slash-and-burn system, widely used in southern CAR, the forest is felled and then burnt, and maize, followed by cassava and banana crops, are planted in the ashes. Three or four years later, the plot is abandoned and left fallow without any management until its next clearing. A study of the evolution of the landscape south of Bangui, the country's capital, shows that this practice leads to the retreat of the forest, replaced initially by a patchwork of degraded forest and Chromolaena odorata scrub, then by Imperata cylindrica savannahs where agriculture becomes almost impossible. To avoid this degradation of ecosystems, leading to soil impoverishment, biodiversity loss, carbon emissions and the flight of populations, the PDRSO project introduced farmers in several villages to an Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR) technique that protects young trees during the cropping cycle so that a stand of trees, and not invasive bushes and grasses, later occupies the land during the fallow cycle. Method: A negotiation phase between the farmers and the researchers made it possible to choose the species of interest and the technique to conserve them. Monitoring of 24 plots with ANR and 20 control plots without ANR, made it possible to assess the growth of woody plants. Surveys of farmers who had participated in the operation and those who had not, allowed us to assess their perception of the method and their willingness to continue it over time. Results: Two years after being selected, the young trees already are larger than the main invasive species and are impeding their establishment In addition, the farmers see the importance of preventing their village territory from being transformed into barren savannah. Difficulties reported include insecurity of land tenure, lack of support from the administration, the brevity of projects, and the difficulty of fighting fires due to lack of collective organization, all in an environment of civil war. Discus

Context: While many companies are seeking to offset their carbon emissions, following the resolutions of COP 26 in Glasgow, very few are financing carbon sequestration through enrichment of the above-ground biomass of traditional agroforestry systems in Africa. One reason is the difficulty of monitoring the effects of incentive policies on a large number of small-scale farmers in areas that are sometimes difficult to access. In the Sahelian Far North region of Cameroon, several projects encouraged the restoration of Faidherbia albida agroforestry parklands by subsidising their ANR (Assisted Natural Regeneration) from 1997 to 2008. A subsidy of about 0.2 USD was given to each of the farmers who kept a Faidherbia seedling or shoot in their fields, i.e., 20 USD ha-1 for 100 trees per ha. An inventory of these parks in 2012 showed that about 1 million trees had been conserved. However, the security crisis of 2015 and restrictions related to Covid-19 have made it difficult for scientists to access these areas. Material and method: To verify the evolution of these agroforests after the end of the subsidy, a remote sensing study was carried out on the territories of two villages, Sirlawe and Gane, using Google-Earth images from 2009, 2013 and 2018. Results: The projected crown area more than doubled between 2009 and 2018, increasing from 246 to 587 m2*ha-1 (2.5% to 5.9%) and from 245 to 575 m2*ha-1 (2.5% to 5.8%) for Sirlawe and Gane, respectively. Discussion: The allometric equations for calculating the above-ground biomass of trees as a function of crown area remain too imprecise to make an acceptable calculation of the carbon stored during this period. However, it is very likely that the amount of above-ground biomass stored and pruned each year to feed livestock and produce wood energy cost much less than biomass obtained from plantations. Conclusion: Further work needs to be carried out by a European project INNOVAC, from 2022 onwards, to refine the remote sensing met

In Timor-Leste, a country located in the south-east of the Indonesian archipelago, GIZ has initiated a project with the aim of developing agroforestry systems (AFS) that are productive, profitable and preserve natural resources. Since 2020, CIRAD researchers have joined the project wishing to describe the diversity of traditional AFS existing in the country. In the Baucau region, located in the north-east of the country, at altitudes 0-1500 m, with rainfall 1000-2000 mm/year, first inventories and surveys have identified 5 types of AFS which vary greatly in function of their tree density. From the lowest to the highest tree density system: i) Crop system including a Fallow phase (3 months to 10 years), ii) SylvoPastoral system; iii) Young Agroforest; iv) Home Garden; v) Forest Garden. Further biomass inventories, soil observations and sampling, participative mapping activities along with Peeble Score Methods and semi-structured interviews contributed to characterize the AFS at a socio-economic, ecological and agricultural practices level.The AFS evolution hypothesis is that they become denser over time, with an increase in biodiversity. However, it has been observed that home and forest gardens are often managed by older people for varied but self-consumed crops, whereas young people are looking for crops that are more marketable and easier to cultivate in non-agroforestry systems. In order to avoid the clearing of these AFS, it is necessary to look for methods to intensify production, adapt it to the needs of young people and valorise the products. Finally, AFS are also markers of the complex social order between families in the same village or with other villages: concerning the sharing of tasks, ownership and exploitation of land products. It is essential to take these factors into account if continued external support is to be provided.

Dans la zone soudano-sahélienne du Nord-Cameroun, à partir de 1994, le projet Développement paysannal et gestion de terroir a encouragé la restauration des parcs agroforestiers à Faidherbia albida en subventionnant leur régénération naturelle assistée (RNA), en prélevant sur les revenus du coton. Ensuite, les instituts de recherche agronomique camerounais (Irad) et français (Cirad) s'associèrent pour étudier la dynamique de restauration de ces parcs, avec l'appui de l'École nationale du génie rural, des eaux et forêts (Engref) et du projet PRASAC, en réalisant des essais d'émondage des arbres, des inventaires et des enquêtes. Mais depuis la crise sécuritaire de Boko Haram (2015), l'accès au terrain est devenu compliqué. L'étude a pour objet de déterminer si un suivi de l'évolution de la couverture arborée de deux de ces parcs serait possible par une photo-interprétation semi-automatique d'images Google Earth prises en saison sèche, basée sur une analyse orientée-objet, et quel serait son degré de fiabilité. La comparaison entre les données provenant d'un inventaire réalisé dans ces parcs en 2012 et celles provenant de l'interprétation d'images Google Earth de 2013 montre que ces dernières sont très imprécises pour l'estimation du nombre d'arbres, en particulier pour les arbres dont le houppier a une surface de 2 à 100 m2, et pour les F. albida qui perdent une partie de leur feuillage et qui sont émondés de façon très irrégulière. Malgré cela, il est constaté que, sur les terroirs de Sirlawé et Gané, la superficie projetée des houppiers a plus que doublé entre 2009 et 2018, en passant respectivement de 246 à 587 m2/ha (2,5 % à 5,9 %) et de 245 à 575 m2/ha (2,5 % à 5,8 %). Cette augmentation du couvert est essentiellement due aux arbres de petite taille. Cette étude dessine des bases pour : inventorier plus précisément avec d'autres types d'images satellitaires ; comparer l'évolution du couvert arboré des villages bénéficiant ou pas de la politique de RNA subventionné

This work was conducted from January 2020 to February 2022 with the participation of several researchers from Forests and Societies, Eco&Sols, Tetis and Innovation units, 4 students from the National University of Timor Lorosa'e (UNTL) and 1 student from the Montpellier SupAgro national school of agronomy and AgroParisTech. The agronomist sent by CIRAD to coordinate the work on site presented the methodological tools used and the typology of the 5 main agroforestry systems integrated in the landscapes of the study area. These systems were analysed in terms of their ecological and socio-economic resilience. The conclusions of this first study show that Timorese agroforestry systems have a strong potential to store carbon in soils and above-ground biomass as well as to contribute to a balance of household food and economic resources through their diversity of functions. In order to improve the resilience of these systems, various challenges need to be addressed, including the improvement of national and international value chains to secure markets and consequently increase the productivity of the systems. Technical constraints in the fight against diseases (animal and plant) and pests were also noted during the field studies. The presentation concludes with the need to enhance the value of these Timorese agroforestry systems, through the support of consumers and institutions in order to preserve their heritage value.