Twenty-four African countries on Monday launched a new drive to enhance efforts to restore forests in the Eastern and Southern Africa region.
The Landscape Restoration Hub for the Eastern and Southern Africa countries was launched in Kigali on the occasion of the International Forests Day.
Jesca Eriyo, the deputy Secretary General of the five-member East African Community bloc said that over 55,000 million of hectares of forests are degraded in the region annually.
This, she said, is affecting ecosystems, biodiversity, and tourism.
“We have to build the capacity of the center to deal with such issues-restoration needs resources and we have to educate community, give them other alternatives,” she continued.
Photo of downtown Kigali by Lemurbaby via Wiki Commons.