By Adama Makasuba
The Greenpeace Africa-Dakar-based Organization has congratulated The Gambia government on its decision to ban timber exportation aimed to combat trafficking and illegal logging following the government ban this month on all timber licenses in order to combat timber exportation and trafficking.
Dr. Aliou Ba, the head of the Greenpeace Africa Oceans Campaign said that illegal and abusive exploitation of forests violates the rights of communities.
He mentioned that “the illegal and abusive exploitation of forests violates the rights of communities, who depend on them for their livelihoods. On top of that, these forests are home to several protected species and carbon sinks for the Gambia.”
He urged other African countries to follow Gambia’s good example while he encouraged the Gambia authorities to also take the same measures for the management of fisheries resources.
He outlined that the protection of forests remains a priority because they are a treasure of biodiversity and contribute to the balance and health of the planet, adding that it should also be noted that without forests, the earth would probably be a desert.
Irene Wabiwa Betoko, the head of the forest campaign at Greenpeace Africa also revealed that according to Greenpeace Africa, the decision echoes the call by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to several states including The Gambia to suspend the trade in rosewood, a protected and particularly endangered species.
