Ahead of official report release: Landscape Alliance, journalists reflect on state of Congo Basin forests in 2025.

The event held at the headquarters of the Central African Forest Commission, COMIFAC, in Yaounde on Monday September 21. It was organised in collaboration with the Central African Forest Observation, OFAC, the technical arm of COMIFAC. 

The Landscape Alliance is the shared operating name for the joint partnership of the Centre for International Forestry Research and the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry, CIFOR-ICRAF.

Marked by presentations and discussions, the session enabled the scientists and journalists to discuss about the importance of understanding the Congo Basin forests related issues, as well as the main themes, data and analyses in the new report of the State of the Forests of the Congo Basin to be released Thursday September 25. 

The report, powered by the European Union, EU, is the result of over two years of reflection and discussion amongst experts and punctuated by editorial meetings in Douala and Ebolowa, that enabled a stocktaking of the actual implementation of international conventions.

The publication received contributions from over 60 researchers, coordinators, and consultants. During the gathering, Senior Scientists and Forest Policy & Value chains Lead for OFAC-Centre of excellence, Dr Awono Abdon, explained that the report is structured in four parts. 

These include the implementation of the regime relating to climate, biodiversity and desertification; environmental trade agreements; the implementation of EU instruments; and the instruments concerning human rights and cultural heritage.

He also expressed their commitment to strengthening the dialogue between the media, regional institutions, and knowledge stakeholders on the forests of the Congo Basin. 

“We think that the publication of the state of forests in Central Africa should be mastered by all the journalists, because we talk about science, but journalists should take the message for more visibility for the community from the background to understand exactly what is in that publication,” Dr Awono declared during interviews. 

Quizzed on the state of the Central African forest, the Senior Scientists said though much efforts have been made by the different government, much still needs to be done for adaptation to climate change. He emphasised on finding ways to invest local resources to help the population reduce the emissions of green gas effects.

“Yes, the States of Central Africa are doing a lot of efforts, but a lot is still to be done to make sure that we manage our resources, value them, and respect the engagement taken at international conventions,” he added.

Competition launched for journalists

The press briefing was also used as an opportunity to launch a competition for journalists focusing on the production of reports and media content around the data, issues, and themes addressed in the State of the Congo Basin Forests 2025 report. 

The participation procedures, categories, and selection criteria were also presented during the meeting.

“The competition for journalists is to bring out the message from that publication that we would find very useful and how journalists can take the scientific messages and communicate to the whole public,” Dr Awono added. 

He further explained that Landscape Alliance believes that working with journalists will help in creating and pushing forward the desired impact of the report. 

Meanwhile, the session also allowed the media practitioners to learn more about the missions, tools, and the activities carried out by COMIFAC and OFAC to produce, promote, and make accessible knowledge about Central African forests.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3918 of Wednesday September 23, 2026