[See more pictures here.]

The NO REDD in Africa Network gathered here in Maputo Mozambique, on 26 August 2013 during the occasion of an international workshop on REDD with participants from Mozambique, other African countries, North America and South America deliberated on the implications of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) for Africa and by extension the global South.

We recognise the decision of the Tunisia meeting in March 2013 that decided on the need for a No REDD Platform to educate and inform communities and governments of the developing countries about the negative impacts of REDD in all its forms.

We acknowledge the fact that African governments have been ambushed with offers and promises of development financing flowing through REDD and adopted this without applying critical minds and making the necessary consultations.

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Envirotrade’s carbon trading project near the Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique should be a success story. Its carbon credits are certified by the Plan Vivo Foundation. It is certified under the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Alliance Standard. Yet the project is winding down and will close in four years, according to a report in the Mozambique Bulletin.

Envirotrade was set up in 2002 by Robin Birley and Philip Powell. Birley is a UK businessman. He inherited Annabel’s, London’s poshest nightclub from his father. The club is named after his mother, Lady Annabel Vane-Tempest-Stewart, who subsequently married Sir James Goldsmith.

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Maputo, 18 June 2012 (Via Campesina Africa News) – Food production and people's sovereignty in Africa could be seriously compromised by carbon capture projects and the so-called Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Plus (REDD+) mechanism. They can exacerbate food insecurity on the continent and could result in the loss of control over land and forest resources for African farmers.

 

 

^{Farmers "taking care" of the forest in Nhambita}

 

This scenario could become a reality in the near future in Mozambique, as the country has offered its land to serve as a “model” for carbon capture projects and REDD+.

As evening falls, Albertina Francisco*, a farmer from the Nhambita community in Sofala province, Mozambique, returns home. She is tired after another day of work at her machamba (a term used in Mozambique to refer to a patch of farmland). More...

Ten years ago, the EU invested over 1.5 million Euros in the N’hambita carbon project in Mozambique, a model scheme to show how forests could be used to offset industrial emissions. This press release coincides with the release of a report – ‘Carbon Discredited' -  explaining why forest carbon projects fail to provide climate, environment, development  or financial gains. The organisations call on the EU and Member States to stop funding carbon offset projects, including REDD+ projects.

Download the Report here.