This archive report was first published on 27 August 2019.
French President Emmanuel Macron drew attention to the central African forest fires at the G7 summit, echoing concerns raised by the Amazon blazes. However, experts argue that the causes and context of the fires in central Africa are different from those in the Amazon.
While the Amazon fires sparked a global outcry, the central African forest fires are often more seasonal and linked to traditional farming methods. The Congo Basin forest, commonly referred to as the 'second green lung' of the planet, covers an area of 3.3 million square kilometers in several countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Congo, Cameroon, and Central Africa.
Just like the Amazon, the Congo Basin forests absorb tons of carbon dioxide in trees and peat marshes, making them a key way to combat climate change. However, most of the fires shown on NASA maps of Africa are outside sensitive rainforest areas, analysts say.
"The question now is to what extent we can compare," said Philippe Verbelen, a Greenpeace forest campaigner working on the Congo Basin. "Fire is quite a regular thing in Africa. It's part of a cycle, people in the dry season set fire to bush rather than to dense, moist rainforest."
"The forest burns in Africa but not for the same causes," said Tosi Mpanu Mpanu, an ambassador and climate negotiator for the DR Congo. "In the Amazon, the forest burns mainly because of drought and climate change, but in central Africa, it is mainly due to agricultural techniques." While the Amazon fires were largely caused by drought and climate change, the central African forest fires are often linked to agricultural techniques, such as slash-and-burn farming. Many farmers in the region use wood for cooking and energy, and the lack of hydro-electric capacity in countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo threatens the rainforests. Some countries are now implementing stricter environmental policies, such as Gabon's declaration of 13 national parks that make up 11 percent of its national territory. However, more needs to be done to protect the forests that are still largely intact and stop degradation.
