By Joseph ETTA in Calabar
Fourteen forest communities within five local government areas in Cross River State have urged the state government to lift the Moratorium placed on logging, which has been in place for about nine years.
They made the request at an advocacy meeting with Ministries, Departmental Agencies (MDAs), Lawmakers and community leaders on Moratorium and Cross River State Forestry Law by a group of 14 communities within Akamkpa, Etung, Ikom, Yakurr and Obubra Local Government Areas in Cross River State under the EKIAO Forest Conservation Initiative.
The clan head of Ekuri community, Obol Abel Egbe, said the EKIAO initiative was stopping the illegal logging in their different communities.
“We the Chiefs and people within the forest, cluster covering Akamkpa, Etung, Ikom, Yakurr and Obubra Local Government Areas of Cross River State bothered about the rapid rate of forest loss in our communities have decided to come together to collectively address this problem,” he said.
In a paper titled Towards a Sustainable Forest Governance in Cross River State, the Chairman of EKIAO Forest Conservation Initiative, Chief Obio Arong Owai who is also the Village head of Iko Esai, spoke on the communities’ demand.
He said: “For the fact that we have lost more forest within the period of the moratorium and the very high level of corruption and lack of accountability for forest resources loss and lack of incentives for forest conservation, we strongly recommend to the CRS Government that the moratorium or ban on logging should be lifted and to put in place a workable plan and action for sustainable forest management in the State.”
He said the State government needed to “resuscitate Forest Management Committees (FMCs) or similar institutions in communities to work closely with the Forestry commission to manage our community forest and even the reserves, raise community nurseries, and carry out regeneration”.
He added: “Conservation awareness programmes should be designed targeting forest-dependent communities and all partners that do business with forest-dependent communities to promote behavior change and even reduce conflicts related to forest management in our communities”.
Also speaking on the topic, “Legal issues regarding Forestry in Cross River State “, Obio Bassey Arong, a Board member of EKIAO Conservation Initiative, noted that there are gaps in the implementation of the state’s Forest Management law enacted in 2010.”
