Sold down the river - Salva le Foreste

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC 23Central African RepublicPolitical, social and economic frameworkTHE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC (CAR) is a landlocked country inthe centre of the African continent. Its population of 3.4 million is spread over623,000 square kilometres, 70% of which live in remote and isolated areas. With aper capita GNP of US$ 320 and life expectancy of 49 years, 1 CAR is one of the poorestcountries in the region. Only the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has a lower per capitaGNP but, in spite of being a country at war, its inhabitants can expect to live a few yearslonger on average than their counterparts in CAR.CAR gained independence from France in 1960, but the country’s first multi-party electionsdid not take place until 1993, over 30 years later. In the meantime, dictators ruled, includingone of the cruellest of the continent, Colonel Jean-Bedel Bokassa, who was in power from1966 to 1979. Democratic elections, however, have not ensured political stability. In 1996,three military-led mutinies caused widespread damage in the capital, Bangui. In spite ofmediation by other countries, the United Nations and the establishment in 1997 of the BanguiAccords between the CAR government and the mutineers, 2 political instability continued. TheUN peacekeeping forces, which entered the country in April 1998, were withdrawn inFebruary 2000. According to the CAR government, “peace … remains fragile, poverty iswidespread and basic social services have steadily deteriorated”. 3The government is trying to meet the conditions for debt relief under the Heavily IndebtedPoor Countries Initiative (HIPC), but it is not certain that they will qualify, despite a total debtstock of US$ 928 million and a debt-to-exports ratio of 455%. 4 Subsistence agriculture is thebackbone of the country’s economy. Diamonds are the primary source of export revenue, butthey are regularly smuggled out of the country, depriving the government of tax revenues. 5Timber is the second most important source of export revenue and seems likely to becomemore significant. Even though CAR’s economy deteriorated in 2000, partly as a result ofdisrupted oil imports because of the war in neighbouring DRC, timber exports increased, andthe government is forecasting yet more growth in 2001. 6 The forestry sector is the top privateemployer in the country, having 3,500 people on its payroll in 1999. 7 Timber exports,however, do not appear to have contributed to higher living standards and forestry companiesoperating in the country have a record of undermining traditional social structures in the areaswhere they operate.CentralAfricanRepublicAccording to theCAR government,“peace … remainsfragile, poverty iswidespread andbasic socialservices havesteadilydeteriorated”.Forest policy and practiceCompared to the other countries in the Congo region, CAR has a relatively small area offorest – around five million hectares – corresponding to 8% of the country’s territory. 8 Yet interms of commercially valuable species,such as Sapelli, Ayous and Sipo, its forests are some ofthe richest in Africa. 9 Moreover, from an ecological perspective, they represent a crossroadswhere the bio-geographic areas of Central Africa meet. 10The timber industry in CAR is the smallest, by volume, in the Congo Basin but stillaccounts for 16% of the country’s export earnings. The export of timber is hampered bytransport, CAR being landlocked, which often adds 60% to the costs of production. 11 Timberis either sent by river and rail via Brazzaville to Pointe Noire in neighbouring Congo(Brazzaville), or by road to Douala in Cameroon. The Cameroonian route accounts for mosttraffic today because of railway difficulties in Congo (Brazzaville).The country’s forests grow in two distinct areas: 12§ In the south-west, in the regions of Sangha and Lobaye, forests cover an area of 3.7 millionhectares. 13 Most logging concessions are located in this area, especially along the borderswith Cameroon and Congo. This area is also where most of the diamond mining takesplace;§ In the east, in the Bangassou area, forests cover an estimated 1.2 million hectares. Thisregion is very isolated, and little is known about its forests. They are not being exploitedcommercially because of transport difficulties.Forest concessions and other forestry matters are governed by the Forestry Code of 9 June1990 14 and by some articles of the 1995 Finance Law. 15 Despite some good provisions, theministry responsible for forests, the Ministère de l’Environnement, des Eaux, Forêts, Chasseset Pêches, lacks the resources to monitor and enforce legislation properly and planning isweak. The roles and rights of private enterprises and local communities are poorly defined. 16According to 1997 Ministry data, 2.5 million hectares of the forests in the south-west wereallocated to nine industrial permit holders, covering 68% of the forests of the Sangha andLobaye regions (see map, p.36). 17 Data from the Ministry obtained in the year 2000 indicate