Congo is the word’s second country after the size of its tropical forest, which has suffered considerably after the two World Wars.
Now, a bigger threat to the tropical forest are the national and international companies which are cutting them down massively.
In hope that they can save the forest and their territory from these companies, last week, 500 villagers of the Democratic Republic of Congo have hired GPS specialists to map the forestry domain.
This action is supported by the Tropical Forest Foundation from Great Britain which has trained 66 “master cartographers” to help the villagers in mapping their whole territory and pointing out the most significant areas: the villages, the holly places, the fishing and hunting places.
This action is very important because over 2/3 of Congo’s population depends on this critical element to survive.
The natives have not been taken into consideration so far by the forest administration law, and now, for the first time, with the help of these maps, the Democratic Republic of Congo will be aware of the existence of this forest related communities.
The mapping process will end in time for the Congo government to decide in a new session how to use the different territories of this forest.
For the indigene populations, who have already lost a part of their land in favour of the cutting companies, this represent a clear opportunity to have their voices heard. |
