Overview

In Côte d’Ivoire restoration deploys a sparce set of tree species and a fraction of the spectacular tree diversity of the former high conservation value forest. This project, led by CIFOR-ICRAF with BGCI as a key partner, will build capability/capacity to use a wide array of indigenous, particularly threatened, plants. This will be achieved through an inventory of a degraded 6800 ha botanic reserve, support to seed collection and propagation activities to raise and stock a wider range of trees, and growing the market for the propagules by raising awareness of biodiversity among cocoa and other restoration actors. This includes expertise from Tooro Botanical Gardens, Uganda, delivering training to local institutes.

Key results to include:

• A restoration plan for Reserve Botanique de Divo jointly developed by key stakeholders, that includes actions to counter threats for at least 12 threatened tree species known at the reserve (species confirmed from the inventory)
• The capacity to provide native planting materials of 110 individuals from 20 nurseries and at least three botanical-natural resource-related institutions (e.g., Jardin Botanique de Bingerville) increased
• Three government organisations, 3 botanical institutes, 4 cocoa companies and the CDI cocoa government body commit to and support threatened tree conservation and restoration of cocoa landscapes

Partners

Supported by the UK government’s Darwin Initiative fund, this project is implemented in partnership with CIFOR-ICRAF, the Centre National de Floristique (CNF) and the Ministère des Eaux et Forêts. This project started in May 2023 and is expected to run October 2024

For more information contact alex.hudson@bgci.org and cristina.coletto@bgci.org