International Woodfuel Conference 2021

Image: CIFOR-ICRAF

Sustainable Woodfuel Value Chains in Africa: Governance, Social, Economic and Ecological Dimensions

23-25 NOVEMBER 2021, KUMASI, GHANA



Woodfuel (charcoal and firewood) constitutes over 70% of the energy needs for cooking and heating in sub-Saharan Africa. The consumption is on the rise due to population growth, poverty and urbanisation. The production is accessible to a large number of households, yet characterised by poor harvesting and processing practices.

The wood fuel sectors in most sub-Saharan African countries are characterised by a high degree of informality.

Coal transport.
Photo: Christian Pilegaard Hansen

There are on-going efforts in most countries to formalise the sector, that is, to organise, regulate and control the production and trade, typically under the heading of sustainability. These plans give stronger roles to institutions of the state to control the production and trade through permits, taxes, and enhanced controls. However, attempts at formalising the sector without an intimate understanding of the ecological, social, and economic contexts within which the production and trade take place, run the risk of failure or may compromise wood fuel-dependent livelihoods.

Sustainable wood fuel production and trade remains a contested issue and big challenge in Africa that needs to be tackled urgently and collectively with all stakeholders involved.         

At its 22nd session held in March 2020 in South Africa, the African Forestry and Wildlife Commission (AFWC) requested FAO to support the compilation, analysis and dissemination of good practices for sustainable charcoal production as well as the adoption of alternative sources of energy and recommended that FAO support countries in the formulation and implementation of national charcoal strategies. Indeed a number of organisations have been working in the sector with the aim of generating knowledge and evidence to support decision making for sustainable wood fuel production and consumption. This conference will provide an opportunity to discuss current knowledge, practices and experiences and best ways forward.

Presentations made at the conference

 

8:00-9:30

 

Conference check-in and morning coffee: Pick up badge and conference packet. Sale of tickets for the field trip on Day 3.

SESSION 1 - PLENARY

 

9:30-10:45

 

Plenary hall

 

CONFERENCE OPENING

Introduction of Chairperson

 Response by Chairperson

 

Welcome Address by Prof. Ben Kwaku Branoh Banful,

Provost, College of Agric. And Natural Resources, KNUST

 

Opening statement by Christian Pilegaard Hansen, University of Copenhagen on behalf of conference co-organizers

Statement by Mr. Abebe Haile-Gabriel, FAO Assistant Director General and Regional Representative for Africa

Statement by Mr. J.M Allotey, Chief Executive Officer, Forestry Commission Ghana

Statement by Hon. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Minister of Energy, Ghana (tbc)

Chairperson’s closing remarks

Cultural interlude

 

Chairperson: Prof. (Mrs.) Rita Akosua Dickson (Vice Chancellor, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology)

 Moderator: Emmanuel Acheampong

10:45-11:00

 

Short break

11:00-12:00

Plenary hall

KEYNOTE PRESENTATION NO. 1

 

“The current state and future of charcoal research in Africa”, by Dr. Tuyeni Heita Mwampamba (online), National Autonomous University of Mexico

 

Questions and Answers

 

Moderator: Emmanuel Acheampong

12:00-13:30

 

LUNCH

SESSION 2 – PARALLEL TRACKS

13.30-15.00

Room 1

TRACK A – ACADEMIC

 

CHARCOAL ECONOMIC VALUE AND LIVELIHOODS

·       Factors influencing participation and income from charcoal production and trade in Ghana (Lawrence Kwabena Brobbey (physical))

·       Assessment of economic returns from charcoal production and trade in Oyo North Zone of Oyo State, Nigeria (Oyinlola Abiodun Fasoro (online))

·       Contribution of firewood harvesting and trading to the livelihood of rural households in the North East Gonja district in the Savannah Region of Ghana (Mohammed Seidu (physical))

·       Market analysis of fuelwood as household cooking energy in rural Rwanda – a qualitative assessment (S. Ramlah Abbas (physical))

·       An estimation of national charcoal production: The case of Ghana (KS Nketiah (physical))

 

Moderator: Mawa Karambiri

 

13.30-15.00

Room 2

TRACK B – ACADEMIC

SUSTAINABLE PLANTING AND REGENERATION OF WOODFUEL  

·       Tree plantations and the access of smallholder farmers to land and natural resources in the transition zone of Ghana (Kojo Amanor (Physical)

·       Perception of charcoal producers on the establishment of woodlots for charcoal production and its impacts on their livelihoods: a case study in the Kintampo North Municipality of the Bono East Region of Ghana (Adade Michael (physical))

·       World Vision Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) Approach- A Catalyst for Sustainable Wood fuel production in Ghana (Maxwell Amedi (online))

·       Using pruning from trees on-farms and cleaner biomass cooking appliances reduces women’s energy burden and improves human wellbeing (James K Gitau (physical))

 

Moderator: Frank Agyei

13.30-15.00

Plenary hall

TRACK C – PRACTICE 

 

SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES 

·       Managing invasive Prosopis species through charcoal production in Kenya (Simon Choge, Kenya Forestry Research Institute (online))

·       Raising awareness campaign for youth on land restoration through nursery development and tree planting; Damian James, MVIWAARUSHA/FFF (online)

·       Practice alternatives: Combination of sustainably farmer-managed natural regeneration within community landscapes for charcoal production; Mark Kebo Akparibo, GHaFFaP (physical)

·       Green Fire Belts for firewood and charcoal production, Lucy Amissah (physical), CSIR- Forestry Research Institute of Ghana, Kumasi, Ghana

·       Transitioning Wood Fuel Energy as Catalyst for Landscape Restoration and Sustainability Daryl Bosu(physical) /A Rocha Ghana, Cisco Aust (physical)/GIZ Ghana

 

Moderator:   Sophie Grouwels, FAO/FFF 

15:00 -15:30

 

Coffee and tea break

SESSION 3 – PARALLEL TRACKS

15:30-17:00

Room 1

TRACK A – ACADEMIC

 

CHARCOAL GOVERNANCE

·       Institutional and governance arrangements shaping cross-border charcoal trade flows, a case study of Busia Border Post, Kenya-Uganda Border (Jared Gambo (physical))

·       Community-Based Governance Arrangements for Charcoal Production in Ghana (Joseph Asante (physical))

·       Effects of transition from open access to community-based management on the social network of charcoal producers (Hanneke van ‘t Veen (online))

·       Towards Formalization of Woodfuel Value Chain in Liberia: Progress and Challenges (Dr. Ibrahim M. Favada (online))

·       Preparation and implementation of a fuelwood supply masterplan in Cameroon (ProPFE/GIZ) and Madagascar (PAGE/GIZ) (Martial Charpin (online))

 

Moderator: Kyereh Boateng

15:30-17:00

Room 2

TRACK B – ACADEMIC

 

CLIMATE CHANGE AND WOODFUEL

·       Climate change impacts and decarbonization of woodfuel (charcoal and firewood) systems in Kenya (Moses Kirimi (physical))

·       Mesures d’atténuation de l’abattage du bois dans le Bassin du Congo: l’expérience du projet pilote REDD+ au nord-Cameroun (Mebe Mba’a Cédrick Serges Maël (physical))

Moderator: Joana Beulah Echeruo

15:30-17:00

Plenary hall

TRACK C – PRACTICE

KILN/STOVES TECHNOLOGIES

·       Video: Prosopis charcoal production using improved earth mound kiln in Baringo County, Kenya. Joseph Kibet

·       Technical and environmental performance of the Green Mad Retort charcoal-making kiln in Madagascar, Michaël Temmerman, ECO Consult Germany (online)

·       Sustainable production of charcoal and manufacture of bio fertilizer based on the casamance kiln, Togo (Noumonvi Kodjo,  UROPC-M (online))

·       Charcoal Production with efficient kilns – work experience Dr. Chris Adam (physical), Kiln producer

·       Video: Charcoal Production in Zambia Jolien Shure, CIFOR (physical) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9wekg4aiNQ&t=1s

 

 Moderator: K.S. Nketiah

17:00-17:15

 

Short break

SESSION 4 – PLENARY

17:15-18.45

Plenary hall

Policy panel: Dialogue on effective woodfuel management in multifunctional landscapes (organized by ICRAF/CIFOR)

Presentation: Options for sustainable woodfuel as part of wider forest-agricultural landscapes. Jolien Schure, CIFOR Associate.

 

Panelists:

1.       Zambia: New charcoal rules and option for integrating Assisted Natural Regeneration in policy. Deuteronomy Kasaro (online), Principal Forestry Officer.

2.       Kenya: Charcoal Rules, 10 years on. Clement Ng’oriarengm (physical), Kenya Forest Service.

3.       Cameroon: Incentive mechanism for charcoal from wood residues. Georges Amougou, MINFOF Littoral.

4.       Ghana: Bridging the sectoral divide. Kwakye Ameyaw (Physical), Ghana Forestry Commission.

 

Launch of new CIFOR-ICRAF Brief Series on Sustainable Woodfuel.

 

Moderator: Phosiso Sola

18:45-

 

Reception with food and drinks

Exhibition, posters and documentaries

 

 

SESSION 5 – PLENARY

09:00-09:30

Plenary hall

Reporting and take away messages from Day 1

 

Reports from moderators

 

Moderator: Mercy Owusu Ansah   

SESSION 6 – PARALLEL TRACKS

09:30-11:00

Room 1

TRACK A – ACADEMIC

 

CHARCOAL LANDSCAPES

·         The long term role of the charcoal industry in landscape and livelihood change: multidisciplinary evidence from Mozambique (Casey Ryan (online))

·         Charcoal production site detection using a combined remote sensing approach with Landsat-8, Sentinel-2 and VHR satellite imagery (Hanneke van ‘t Veen (online))

·         Applying Landscape approach to charcoal value Chains: The GML Project Model in Yangambi Engagement Landscape (YEL), Republic Democratic of Congo (Lwanga Kasereka-Muvatsi (Physical))

·         Sustainable charcoal production in community-based forest management areas in Tanzania (Charles Leonard (Physical))

·         Wood fuel production systems in the refugee settlement of Garoua boulai council – East Cameroon (Pamela Tabi (Online))

·         Fuelwood Rush and the Assemblage of Community Forest Management in Burkina Faso (Mawa Karambiri (Physical))

 

Moderator: Jolien Schure

09:30-11:00

Room 2

TRACK B – ACADEMIC

 

WOODFUELS AND ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT

·         Sources of wood for charcoal production in Asantekwa and Nkwanta (Tontie L Kanton (physical))

·         The importance of versatility in the selection of priority species by local communities for wood energy plantation (Ifèdé-Olla Aurès Parfait Tchiché (online))

·         Sustainable biomass production for enhanced energy and food security – exploring the potential of improved fallows (Natxo García-López (physical))

·         How land tenure and labor relations mediate charcoal’s environmental footprint in Zambia: implications for sustainable energy transitions (Johanne Pelletier (online))

 

Moderator: Christian P Hansen

09:30-11:00

Plenary hall

TRACK C – PRACTICE 

SUSTAINABLE BIO ENERGY ALTERNATIVES

·         Cotton stalks for briquettes in Zambia (John Ngwenyama, Cotton Association of Zambia (Online))

·         Charcoal production from sawmill residues in the East Cameroon region Félix Kouedji (physical), Eco Consult Germany

·         Use of Bamboo for Energy Production Michael Kwaku (physical), Ghana and National Coordinator, Inter-Africa Bamboo Smallholder Farmers Livelihood Development Programme (INBAR) Kumasi-Ghana

·         Biochar to restore cocoa forest in Ghana. Ellen R. Graber (Physical), Volcani Institute

·         Video on sustainable wood energy and forest landscape restoration Michela Morese (online), Global Bioenergy Partnership (GBEP), FAO

 

Moderator: Enoch Agyepong, Renewable Energy Association of Ghana

11:00-11:30

 

Coffee and tea break

11:30-12:30

Plenary hall

KEYNOTE PRESENTATION NO. 2

 

“Charcoal as just another arena of exploitation: Precarity is everywhere” by Prof. Jesse Ribot (online)  (American University, Washington DC)

 

Questions and Answers

 

Moderator: Frank Agyei

12:30-14:00

 

Lunch

SESSION 7 – PARALLEL TRACKS

14:00-15:30

Room 1

TRACK A: Policy panel: How conducive are energy and environmental policies in Africa to sustainability interventions in the charcoal sector? Preliminary findings from an assessment of 31 AFR100 countries (organized by FAO and AUDA-NEPAD)

 

·         Overview of main findings by Tuyeni Mwampamba and co- authors

·         Q & A and feedback on main findings from audience

·         Presentation and discussion of country-specific findings in breakout groups

 

Moderator: Tuyeni Mwampamba

14:00-15:30

Room 2

TRACK B - ACADEMIC

 

VALUE CHAIN ANALYSIS

·         The impacts of Covid-19 on the charcoal value chain and rural livelihoods in Mozambique (Judith Krauss (online))

·          “Forestry officials don’t have any land or rights here”: Authority of politico-legal institutions along Ghana’s charcoal commodity chain (Frank Agyei (physical))

·         The charcoal value chain in Kenya: Actors, practices and trade flows in selected sites (Geoffrey Ndegwa (online)

 

Moderator: Emmanuel Acheampong

 

14:00-15:30

Plenary hall

TRACK C - PRACTICE

 

INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS

·         Organization of local charcoal chapters and local governance in Liberia (Richard T.A. Dorbor, National Charcoal Union of Liberia (online))

·         The Participatory Guarantee System for sustainable charcoal – Pilot in  Choma District, Zambia (Emmanuel Mulenga, ZNFCA-Choma (online))

·         Firewood producers and marketing association empowers women through branch firewood commercialization, Gambia (Kanimang Camara and Jainaba Badjie, Firewood Producers and Marketing Association (online))

·         Video; Charcoal makers turn to sustainability in Yangambi Landscape, DRC CIFOR  Jolien Schure  https://www.cifor.org/knowledge/video/u3UMxH3XgGg

 

Moderator: Paul Osei Tutu

15:30-16:00

 

Coffee and tea break

SESSION 8 - PLENARY

16:00-17:30

 

Plenary hall

MULTI-STAKEHOLDER PANEL – WHAT FUTURE FOR WOODFUELS IN AFRICA? REFLECTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO MOVE FORWARD

 

Panelists:

·         Rashid Ali Abdallah, Executive Director, African Energy Commission

·         Xia Zuzhang, Forestry officer, FAO Forestry Division

·        Benjamin Akibundu, AFR100 Coordinator,  AUDA-NEPAD

·        Paula Edze, Ministry of Energy,  Ghana

·         Anicef Ngomin, Ministry of Forestry, Cameroon

·         Béatrice Despioch, Co-founder Eco-charcoal Limited, Kenya

·         Mark K. Akparibo,  Ghana Federation of Forest and Farm Producers

 

Questions and answers session

 

Moderator: Nora Berrahmouni

17:30-18:00

Plenary hall

WRAP-UP, NEXT STEPS AND CLOSING 

 

Closing statements:

·         Robert Nasi, Director General CIFOR and Managing Director CIFOR-ICRAF

·         Abebe Haile-Gabriel, FAO Assistant Director General and Regional Representative for Africa

·         Seth Manu, Ministry of Energy, Ghana

 

Moderator: Christian P. Hansen