Quality training is indispensable in order to achieve « Sustainable Forest management in Central Africa », the goal of the COMIFAC Convergence Plan. Major advancements in the forestry sector stressed the need to ensure the consistency of national training policies in the domains of forestry and the environment.

Please download the sub-regional directive on forestry and environmental training (final version)

This is an oustanding success to celebrate, the 2^nd of December 2010, the sub-regional directive on forestry and environmental training was approved by participants to the sub-regional workshop held in Douala, Cameroon, representing the various COMIFAC member countries. The final text shall be presented to COMIFAC Ministers Council for adoption.

The Douala workshop crowns a political consultation process in the sub-region and capitalises the numerous achievements of these past years. RIFFEAC (Network of Forestry and Environmental Training Institutions in Central Africa) [link http://www.riffeac.org].and its German partner, InWEnt (German Agency for “Capacity Building and International Development“) [link http://inwent.org], are committed to facilitate a participatory process for the preparation of the sub-regional directive. This series of national workshops included contributions from nine COMIFAC countries in order to ensure that needs at national level are considered. Theses national discussions were put together and examined during the sub-regional workshop in Douala.

The strategic document reflects the four converging activities which make up the 7.4 component of COMIFAC Convergence Plan:

♦ harmonisation of training programmes;

♦ specialisation of training institutions as national schools with a sub-regional statute;

♦ enhancement of the performance of training institutions;

♦ sub-regional strategy for ongoing training.

In all, about 270 participants were involved in the process, including representatives of national Ministries interested by training in forestry and the environment, concerned schools, from the civil society as well as the private sector.

The political consultation process is steered by RIFFEAC and its partner InWEnt, in close collaboration with COMIFAC [link http://www.comifac.org]. The process was made possible thanks to the support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The activities were supported by ECO Consult [link http://www.eco-consult.com].

To learn more, please contact Mr Tarla (RIFFEAC; tarla.francisnchembi3@gmail.com), or Mr Heidemann (InWEnt; heiko.heidemann@inwent.org).