The challenge of HIV/AIDS: Where does agroforestry fit in? - World ...

OpeningOpening the conference on a personal note, the Honourable Kipruto arap Kirwa, Kenya’sMinister for Agriculture gave Kenya’s perspective on agroforestry. He noted that schools andyoung people should be more involved in tending to trees. This would nurture a responsibilityfor the global environment, land care and sustainable development in the next generation.“We look at forests and agroforestry as lessening the pressure on land and providing asource of cash… The more we invest in agroforestry, the better our future,” he observed. “Sothe challenge is how to inculcate our people so they understand that the more you invest inagroforestry, the better and brighter your life and that of your children.”In his welcoming remarks, Dr Eugene Terry, Chair of the Centre’s Board of Trustees, notedthat the Centre’s accomplishments have transformed lives and landscapes; not to mention theCentre itself. He added that the development of the Centre started from the inside out, as ittransformed itself into a truly global enterprise tackling global issues. That change continuestoday with the Centre’s recently launched theme-based structure that supersedes its previousfocus on individual programmes. “This conference will help us get valuable feedbackon these new ideas from our partners and stakeholders,” he added.Thanking all investors, particularly Kenya, which hosts the World Agroforestry Centre’s globalheadquarters, Dr Terry stated, “Only by working together in the future, as we have in the past,can we realize the potential of agroforestry and sustainable development. Each one of usshould rededicate our effort as we move into the next phase of this institution’s existence.”Managing the landscapeObserving that about a quarter of the world’s poor depend to some degree on forests, Mr IanJohnson, Chair of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)and Vice-President of the World Bank, noted, “ICRAF has shown us that forests are morethan trees, and that farming is closely connected to landscape management. The Centre hasunderstood both the local and the global dimensions of this connection. The World Bank willincrease its commitment to forests, which are a survival base for the poor.”According to Mr Syaka Sadio of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations(FAO), land degradation is the most serious environmental issue in Africa. He added that theworld food situation has never been so worrying, especially in the face of rising populations,declining yields and the decreasing quality of land resources. “At the current rate, we willachieve our Millennium Development Goals 140 years later than planned,” he lamented.But there is a glimmer of hope in this bleak picture: “Agroforestry seems to have promisingpotential to reduce the decline in soil fertility and to increase income. Agroforestry should berespected as a tool for integrating many different sciences. Trees outside of forests, including