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December2016 POLICYBRIEFUsing& restoring theMiombowoodlands: needsfor an integrated and holistic approach inecosystem management for long termsustainabilityPolicy decisions made now about how todevelop the Miombo region of Africa willhave far-reaching consequences for thepeople living in this region and for theglobe. There are currently conflictingviewpoints about the best way to ensuredevelopment goals and human livelihoodsin the region, while also fulfillingconservation ideals and sequesteringcarbon. These decisions need to begrounded on solid understanding of thesocio-ecologyofthesystem,soundscientificinformationontheratesandcausesoflandcoverchange,andtheyneedtoincludekey-players at all levels of governance - fromlocal,tonational,toglobal.

TheMiomboNetwork(MN)isanallianceofscientiststhataimstoachieveeffectiveandappropriate management policies andpractices by providing science-basedinformation through the use of field-basedapproaches, remote sensing and othergeospatial information technology, as wellasthevalorizationoftraditional-knowledgesystems and new biotechnologies. Thispolicybriefistheoutcomeofameetingheldin July 2016, in Maputo under the theme“Restoring socio-ecological and socio-economic relationships in the Miombowoodlands”.

Here we analyse how socio-ecologicalrelationships are affected by the currentstate of Miombo ecosystem as well asoptionsforrestoration.

Socio-ecological relationships in Miombowoodlands

Miombo Woodlands are theJulbernardia/Brachystegia dominatedwoodlandsthatspan2.7millionkm2acrosseight countries in southern and easternAfrica: Democratic Republic of Congo,Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi,Tanzania, Mozambique and partly SouthAfrica(Figure1).Theyarecharacterizedbyhighly variablewoody canopy cover –from40-80% (Frost 1996). The ecosystem hashighplantspeciesdiversityandendemism,and a rich avifauna, containing severalglobal hotspots of biodiversity: thegrassland/woodlands mosaics NW and NEZambia(Mwinilunga,Mporokoso)arejustafew.

76% of the energy used in the region isderived from the woodlands (Ryan et al.,2016); timber products are exported; foodfrom bushmeat (Fa, 2015), caterpillars(Chama,2016),honey(Ribeiroetal.,2016),roots, and leaves are a key source ofnutritionandincome–especiallyduringthedryseasonandalsointimesofcropfailure.Forest products are used and tradedextensively for medicine, curios andornaments (Brigham et al., 1996). Morerecently the carbon storage potential hasbecome a likely source of income and anopportunity to restore over-utilisedwoodlandswiththeinitiationofREDD+.

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Figure 1. Map of African Vegetation,showing Miombo woodlands in darkgreen(Source:White,1983).

Fire is a cultural management tool, whichhasbeen(and isbeing)usedbymostruralcommunities in the Miombo region. It isalso a key ecological factor in maintainingMiombo ecology. However, changes in fireregimesderivedfromamongothers,humanpopulation growth and climate changes,may impact on the ecologyofMiombo andthus, the resources provided by theecosystem.Thedimensionofthesechangesisstilllessknownintheregion.

At the global level, Miombo represents animportantcarbonrepositoryandapotentialsource of both renewable energy (viasustainable charcoal industry) and carbonstorage (through increasing above-groundbiomass). Up to 80% of the population inthe region–both ruralandurban -benefitfrom goods and services from Miombowoodlands(Malimbwietal.,2010).

“Resource use ofMiombowoodlands hasnotenabledtheruralmassestocomeoutofpoverty.”

Causes of forest degradation anddeforestation

Thisregionisalsohighlightedasapotentialareaforexpansionofagricultureinthenextcentury. Conversion of Miombo foragriculture, forestry, and mining is

increasing, and in order to fulfill Africa’sagricultural development goals this willhave to accelerate. Concurrently, the intactnatural Miombo woodlands are underincreasing pressure to provide all theresources mentioned above – not only tothe rural population, but also to the ever-increasing urban population via trade andbusinesses. Thismayresult indegradationof thewoodlands and deforestation,whichin turn reduces the resources thatmay beextracted. We estimate that between250,000 and 300,000 ha/year of Miomboaredegradedand/orlost(MiomboNetworkMeeting,July2016).

FactFiguresaboutMiomboresources

• TimberindustryinMozambiquewasworth$330.3millionin2011(UT-REDD,2016).

• 14.8millionm3woodusedinMozambiqueforbiomassenergy(Sitoeetal.,2010).

• MedicinalortherapeuticplantsandproductsinSouthernAfricaareestimatedtoyieldUS$150million/yearalthoughsomeoftheharvestingmethodsareunsustainable(Syampuganietal.,2009).

• Provisioningservices(includingNTFPs)contribute$9±2billion/yeartorurallivelihoods(Ryanetal.,2016).

• 76%ofenergyusedintheregionisderivedfromthewoodlands(Ryanetal.,2016).

• Tradedwoodfuelshaveanannualvalueof$780M(Ryanetal.,2016).

• Woodlandsstore18-24PgCcarbon(Ryanetal.,2016).

Restoration options in the Miombowoodlands

Introducingmeasures to conserveMiombovegetation will clearly impact the currenteconomicgrowthtrajectoriesof theregion,but it is also clear that well-managedMiombo vegetation provides more goodsand services to the people than over-

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utilized landscapes. The main tree speciesin Miombo are clonal - which means theyuse root suckers to spread. This makesMiombovegetationveryresilient toabove-ground disturbances like fire and woodharvesting (Syampungani et al., 2015,Gumbo, 2016), but very sensitive to landclearing activities like large-scalecultivation,becausethetreesdonotmainlyregenerate from seed. Miombo requirescycliccuttingofmaturestands,silviculturalthinningandpruninginstanddevelopmentstages towards maturity, through regularuseofresourcesbyruralsocietyandothers,tomaintainplantdiversityandproductivityof the system. Growth rates in matureMiombocanbeslow-0.24cm/year(Amadeet al., 2016)- but when disturbed throughharvesting/wind-throw the resproutingstumpscanhavehighregrowthrates-upto1.4cm per year when properly managed(Syampungani, 2010). This implies thatsustainable utilisation of Miombo ispossible(e.g.Figure2;Geldenhuys,2016)ifvariousutilizationaspectsareincorporatedinMiombowoodlandsmanagement.

“Fires are an important ecologicaldeterminant of Miombo, but need to becorrectlymanaged.”

Firehasbeenconsideredasnegativefactorfor theMiomboecology.Frequent firescanimpose important changes to Miombovegetation affecting its capacity to providegoods and services to rural and urbancommunitiesintheregion.Appropriatefireregimes are contested, and depend onparticularmanagementgoals.Butingeneralfirefrequencyofevery3-4yearsandoflowintensityarekeytomaintainthewoodlands(Ribeiroetal.,2013).

Governanceissues

The economic contributions of Miombowoodlandsarenotadequatelyaccountedinnational GDP's, whichmeans that they arenot appropriately valued in developmentplans. For example the 14.8 million m3 ofwood used as biomass energy annually inMozambique (Sitoe et al., 2010), does notappear in its national asset valuation.Consequently national planning and policy

decisionsarebeingmadewithoutaproperappreciationofthecontributionofMiombowoodlandstonationaltreasury.

Figure2.Cyclicclearing-cropping-fallow-regrowth maintains diversity &productivity of Miombo (Source:Geldenhuys,2016).

“Conserving Miombo does not requirestopping human activities – justmanagingthem.”

Local, national, regional, and globalinterests in Miombo woodlands are notalways aligned (see examples below), andthis is exacerbated by lack of inter-sectorcoordination in the Miombo woodlandsmanagement. Sector policies across theregioncollectivelyaimtoaddresstheplightof theMiombo but sustainable approachesneed to bewell understood and applied atcountry level. There is need to harmonizepolicy frameworks across the region toensure collaborative effort towards themanagementoftheMiombo.

Long-term scenario planning suggests thatthe urban population of Africa will doubleby2030(Campbel,2014).This isnot likelyto reduce the pressure on woodlandresources, but it does provide flexibility interms of land use planning. Researchdemonstrates that it is possible to designdevelopment plans in Miombo, whichoptimize agricultural production, carbonstorage and conservation objectives (Estes2016), but this requires good research-policy relationships, and solid governancestructures.

“The cost of large-scale agriculturalexpansion to communities who haveeconomies intimately linked to the intactvegetation need to be quantified andconsideredindevelopmentplans.”

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Balancing carbon storage, biodiversityconservation, food security and humanlivelihoods

Carbon storage:Reducing wood harvestingin Miombo will increase above-groundbiomass, but will increase demand foralternative (fossil-fuel based) energy, andwill negatively impact rural economies(Hofstad et al, 2009). Efforts to increasecarbonstorageintheseecosystemsneedtodo a full cost accounting of thebiogeochemical, environmental, andeconomic consequences of theseinterventions. However, this ecosystemhistoricallyhadhigh levelsofutilizationbypeople and by animals like elephants, andhas always burned in wildfires. It istherefore, not easy to assess the degree ofutilisation that is appropriate, nor toquantify the carbon storage potential(Jindal,2008).

Fire management: attempts to implementfire suppression/reduction targets need toaccommodate the fact that fire is bothnecessaryfortheappropriatefunctioningofthese ecosystems, and useful as amanagementtooltoacquireresourcesfromMiombo.Ratherthanablanketapproachtofire management in Miombo we suggest amulti-faceted approach that allows for avarietyoffireregimesinalandscape.

Agriculturalexpansion:isnecessarytofeedthepopulationoftheregion,butasMiombovegetation does not recover easily afterbeing ploughed the extent and type ofagriculture should be carefully planned tohave minimal impact on biodiversity.Likewise, the impacts of agriculturalexpansion on the rural livelihoods of thepeople who currently use the Miombowoodlands need to be included in alleconomicassessments.

ReferencesAmade, M. A.; Chaúque, A. and Ribeiro, N. S.Assessment of woody vegetation dynamics(2005-2015) across a fire gradient in themiombowoodlandsofNiassaNationalReserve.Book of abstracts: Miombo Network meeting,July2016.

Brigham, T., A. Chihongo, and E. Chidumayo1996. Trade in woodland products fromMiombo region. In: Campbell, Bruce Morgan,ed.The Miombo in transition: woodlands andwelfareinAfrica.CIFOR,Campbel K. 2014 Cities and BiodiversityOutlook: Action and Policy. Montreal, Canada:Secretariat of the Convention on BiologicalDiversity. 12–13.(doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.99889).

Policypointers

• Political commitment and support atregional level (SADC) is critical tomobilizing harmonized policies andactionbymemberstates.

• Assessing the contribution of Miombowoodlands to national economies andvaluation of forest resources willprovide key information that canengagepolicymakers.

• Communities must be enabled tonegotiate land use and managementoptions that support multiple uses ofMiombo woodlands and informrestorationstrategiesandplans.

• Woodfuel shouldbe considered aspartof the solution to reducing fossil fuelemissions.

• REDD+ can help tomitigate the effectsof climate change and to restoredegraded woodland but it needs to bebalanced against other managementobjectives.

• Researchneedstobebettercoordinated– both within the scientific communityand between researchers andgovernment.

• Forest policies must be formulatedaround the concept that the Miombospecies are resprouts, light demandingand fire adapted. They should bedesigned to incorporate this body ofscience.

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Role of theMiombonetwork in supporttothewoodlandsrestoration:

• Provide a knowledge management andcollaborativeresearchplatform.

• Document best practices in themanagementofMiombo.

• Create a repository of information onresearchonMiombowoodlands.

• Produce high-quality information insupportofdecision-makingsystems.

• Communicate science results to thewider community including policymakersandpractioners.

• Aconceptualframeworkforsustainablemanagement of Miombo woodlandsneedstobeformulatedtoinformdebatewith key stakeholders includinggovernment.

• Seek for SADC recognition as a keyresearch arm in support of regionaldecision-making.

Chama, L.; Siachoono, S.; Christopher, I. andMubemba,B. 2016. Sustainabilityof techniquesemployed in harvesting Miombo worm inZambia. Book of abstracts: Miombo Networkmeeting,July2016.Estes,L.D.,Searchinger,T.,Spiegel,M.,Tian,D.,Sichinga,S.,Mwale,M.,Caylor,K.K.(2016). Reconciling agriculture, carbon andbiodiversity in a savannah transformationfrontier.Philosophical Transactions of the RoyalSociety of London B: Biological Sciences,371(1703).http://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0316Fa,J.E.etal.2015DisentanglingtherelativeeffectsofbushmeatavailabilityonhumannutritionincentralAfrica.Nature5.UT-REDD-MITADER.2016.MozambiqueForestInvestmentProgram(FIP)(Draftversion).Frost,P.G.H.1996TheecologyofMiombowoodlands. In The Miombo in Transition:Woodlands and Welfare in Africa (ed B.Campbell),pp.11–57.Bogor:Cifor.Geldenhuys, C.J. 2016. Ecological basis forpracticalsilviculturalmanagementindeciduousMiombowoodlands to sustain benefits to ruralsociety:adifferentapproach.Bookofabstracts:MiomboNetworkmeeting,July2016.Gumbo, D. and Kaala, M. 2016. Exploring therelationships between tree diversity and

productivityintheMiombowoodlands.Bookofabstracts:MiomboNetworkmeeting,July2016.Hofstad, O., Köhlin, G., & Namaalwa, J. (2009).How can emissions from woodfuel bereduced.InAngelsen,Arild,ed.RealisingREDD+:National strategy and policy options. CIFOR,2009.Jindal, Rohit, Brent Swallow, and John Kerr.2008. Forestry-based carbon sequestrationprojects in Africa: Potential benefits andchallenges.NaturalResourcesForum.Vol.32.No.2.BlackwellPublishingLtd.Malimbwi,R.,Chidumayo,E.,Zahabu,E.,Kingazi,S.,Misana,S.Luoga,E.andNduwamungu,J.2010.Woodfuel.InGumboandChidomayo(eds),TheDryForestsandWoodlandsofAfrica:ManagingforProductsandServices,pp:155-177,CenterforInternationalForestryResearch,UK.Ribeiro,NS;Matos,C.N.;Moura,IR;Washington-Allen, RA and Ribeiro, AI. 2013. MonitoringvegetationdynamicsandcarbonstockdensityinMiombo woodlands. Carbon Balance andManagement 8:11;http://www.cbmjournal.com/content/8/1/11.RyanCM,PritchardR,McNicolI,OwenM,FisherJA, Lehmann C. 2016 Ecosystem services fromsouthern African woodlands and their futureunder global change. Phil. Trans.R. Soc.B371:20150312.http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0312Sitoe,A.,Chidumayo,E.andAlberto,M.2010.TimberandWoodProducts.In:GumboandChidumayo(eds),TheDryForestsandWoodlandsofAfrica:ManagingforProductsandServices,pp:131-153,CenterforInternationalForestryResearch,UK.Syampungani, S., Chirwa, P.W., Akinnifesi, F.K.,Sileshi, G., Ajayi, O.C., 2009. The Miombowoodlands at cross roads: Potential threats,sustainable livelihoods, policy gaps andchallenges. Natural Resources Forum 33: 150-159.Syampungani,S.,Geldenhuys,C.J.,Chirwa,P.W.,2010.AgeandgrowthratedeterminationusinggrowthringsofselectedMiombowoodlandspecies.JournalofEcologyandNaturalEnvironment2(8):167-174.Syampungani,S.,Geldenhuys,C.J.,andChirwa,P.C.2015.RegenerationdynamicsofMiombowoodlandinresponsetodifferentanthropogenicdisturbances:forestcharacterisationforsustainablemanagement.AgroforestrySystems.Doi:10.1007/s10457-015-9841-7Ribeiro, N.S.; Alves, T. and Vaz, I. 2016.Characterization of honey production practicesandimpactsinlizongolevillage,NiassaNational

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Reserve. Book of abstracts: Miombo Networkmeeting,July2016.White, Frank. 1983. Vegetation of Africa – adescriptivememoirtoaccompanythe

Unesco/AETFAT/UNSO vegetation map ofAfrica; Natural Resources Research Report XX;UN Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization,7PlacedeFontenoy,75700,Paris,France.356pages.

Contact:MiomboNetworkNatashaRibeiro,DepartmentofForestEngineering,EduardoMondlaneUniversity,Av.JuliusNyerere,3453,Building#1.P.O.BOX257.Maputo.Mozambique.E-mail:joluci2000@yahoo.com