Weforest zambia

bees, trees and communities

Project description

2019-2020

Since the beginning of 2019, I support two forest restoration projects in Zambia. Much of the miombo woodlands, a dry tropical forest type covering most of Southern Africa, are undervalued and mismanaged. Instigating community forest ownership and introducing alternative forest-friendly livelihoods are at the heart of our operations.

: Every year, Zambia loses an estimated 300,000 hectares of forests. It currently has one of the highest deforestation rates in Africa.

: Tabetha is one of the Community Forest Rangers enforcing the forest rules in Katanino Forest Reserve.

: Charcoal production is so deeply entrenched in the rural communities as urban demand for energy sources spikes.

: To produce charcoal, stems and branches are pilled up, covered with earth and set on fire. The wood is carbonised and the result is coal with a higher energy density than wood, hence easier to transport to cities.

: The wood of Albizia versicolor is often used to make good quality charcoal.

: The three stages in the production process: a cut tree, the charcoal kiln and the charcoal chunks packaged in bags, ready for transportation.

: Full focus, a beementor navigates a beehive in a tree using a pulley system.

: The hive is attached with a hook to a branch, safe from ants, cattle and honey thieves.

: Reuben, the owner of a farm next to Katanino Forest Reserve, is in awe with his new tree asset. He committed to protect part of the forest on his farm, in exchange for the five beehives that WeForest delivered to him.

: Getting the hives to the field comes with unexpected means of transport.

: The first harvest! In Zambia, honey can be cropped twice a year, each with a characteristic taste due to the different flower sources.

: Water in the proximity of the hive is essential for bees to survive the long dry season.