MOGADISHU (Halbeeg News) – The government of Somalia has vowed to tackle issues related to environmental degradation during a forum on unsustainable production and illegal export of charcoal in Somalia organized by the UN Environment in Mogadishu.
Speaking at the forum, Hussein Sheikh Hussein, minister for Environment said that the government is committed to eradicating deforestation by availing alternative options to communities.
“We are in the process of offering communities alternative livelihoods for livestock production and alternative energy for cooking,” Hussein said.
He noted that over-exploitation of forest and rangeland resources causes frequent drought and floods that affect communities and create chronic humanitarian crisis in the country.
The minister said that unsustainable production use and illegal export of charcoal remain the main cause behind deforestation and land degradation in the country.
He attributed the situation to weakening of traditional systems of decision-making on access to resources, absence of alternative sources of energy and limited livelihoods options have led to unsustainable production and trade of charcoal.
“We are making progress following charcoal trade ban by the UN Security Council in 2012, and we continue to work in partnerships in stopping the trade and providing alternatives to charcoal,” he added.
Hussein said the joint Program for Sustainable Charcoal Reduction and Alternative Livelihoods is providing an integrated approach to address the issues.
PROSCAL (Programme for Sustainable Charcoal Reduction and Alternatives Livelihoods) is an interagency programme implemented by the Federal Government of Somalia, in collaboration with UN Environment Programme, UNDP and FAO and is funded by the European Union, and the Swedish and Italian governments.
PROSCAL aims at coordinating international efforts to support the implementation of the ban on illegal export of charcoal from Somalia.
During the forum, a network of environmental journalists in Somalia – the first of its kind in the Horn of Africa nation – was launched.
The Somali Environmental Journalists Network (SEJN) aims to bring together media professionals to increase reporting on environmental challenges and opportunities in the country.
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