Publications
Search Publications (69)
Yaoundé Declaration Declaration: Statement concerning community forestry in the Congo Basin region
10 June 2019
Organisations and individuals from Central Africa, along with international partners from Europe, came together in Yaoundé in February 2019 to discuss the lessons from the recent years of community forest development in the Congo Basin, especially in the context of the projects funded through DFID’s ILLUCBF programme.
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SEVERE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES REPORTED IN AND AROUND SALONGA NATIONAL PARK, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
06 June 2019
An investigation by the Rainforest Foundation UK (RFUK) and Congolese NGO Actions pour la Promotion et la Protection des Peuples et Espèces Menacés (APEM), uncovered a worrying number of human rights abuses allegedly carried out by Salonga National Park’s anti-poaching agents, who receive support and funding from a range of international donors. Allegations include cases of torture, gang rape and extra-judicial killings. The investigation also highlighted a number of wider concerns as to how the park impacts local communities’ rights to land and livelihoods.
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SAFER GROUND: HOW PARTICIPATORY MAPPING CAN MITIGATE THE SOCIAL IMPACTS OF AGRI-BUSINESS IN THE CONGO BASIN
03 June 2019
The expansion of commercial agriculture in the Congo Basin, especially for palm oil, poses great risks to forests and the people who depend on them for their livelihoods and culture. While efforts to make palm oil more ‘sustainable’ focus on avoiding deforestation and biodiversity loss, far less attention has been paid to land rights and social impacts.
International standards for agri-business, such as those created by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), seem to be ill-adapted to the African context. Community mapping in the Congo Basin shows how the social impacts of agri-business are already being felt, while providing an invaluable tool to tackle these threats head-on.
PALMED OFF: AN INVESTIGATION INTO THREE INDUSTRIAL PALM OIL AND RUBBER PROJECTS IN CAMEROON AND THE REPUBLIC OF CONGO
13 May 2019
Research carried out by the Rainforest Foundation UK and its partner organisations found that industrial palm oil and rubber plantations in Africa’s Congo Basin continue to disrespect human rights and destroy large swathes of rainforests.
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Community-based Land-use Planning
12 March 2019
In 2018, RFUK launched a new participatory mapping and land-use planning project in Maniema province, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It aims to develop a community-driven model that will inform land-use planning at the local and national level, serving as an example for a more sustainable and equitable approach to land management.
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Participatory Mapping and Community Forests in the Democratic Republic of Congo
30 January 2019
If well implemented, new community forest legislation in the DRC offers an unprecedented opportunity for communities to obtain legal rights to forests they have inhabited for generations and to improve their livelihoods. However, for community forests to deliver equitable and sustainable outcomes there is a need to ensure that they are developed by the communities themselves, to truly address their needs and priorities.
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