{"id":18666,"date":"2022-05-24T11:00:56","date_gmt":"2022-05-24T09:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resoilfoundation.org\/?p=18666"},"modified":"2022-05-24T19:18:38","modified_gmt":"2022-05-24T17:18:38","slug":"growing-deforestation-in-nigeria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resoilfoundation.org\/en\/environment\/growing-deforestation-in-nigeria\/","title":{"rendered":"Fires and poverty fuel deforestation in Nigeria"},"content":{"rendered":"

From 2002 to 2021, the protected area in southwest Nigeria lost 45 percent of its primary forest. The burden of fires is crucial. Socioeconomic and demographic factors are driving the trend<\/h2>\n

by Matteo Cavallito<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The future of the Akure-Ofosu<\/strong> Forest, one of Nigeria<\/strong>‘s major nature reserves, is at great risk, latest data quoted by the U.S.-based NGO Mongabay have suggested. According to the figures, released the Global Forest Watch project, a monitoring initiative sponsored by the U.S.-based nonprofit organization World Resources Institute, from 2002 to 2021, in fact, the area lost 45 percent of its primary forest<\/strong>, one of the largest remaining in the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cSatellite data from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) suggest fire may have been the driving force behind much of Akure-Ofosu\u2019s most recent spate of forest loss,\u201d writes<\/a> Mongabay<\/strong> . \u201cNASA data show a spike in fire activity in the reserve in late January that burned around 5,000 hectares of land \u2013 higher than in years past.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Established in 1936 and situated just 200 km (125 mi) from the megacity of Lagos, Akure-Ofosu Forest Reserve has long been a sanctuary for Nigeria\u2019s diverse and dwindling wildlife.
Now, deforestation in the rainforest is on the rise as poverty soars. https:\/\/t.co\/Uguji9SU2D<\/a><\/p>\n

— Mongabay (@mongabay) March 25, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n