Abstract:
This paper highlights the position of agroforestry in post-Kyoto
arrangements, particularly the mechanism for Reducing Emissions from
Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+). It summarizes the
prospects to mitigate global climate change and adaptation, especially
in Africa, where the majority of agroforestry systems occur. Since long
agroforestry is known as a management approach to sustain farms and
landscapes, enhance livelihoods of smallholder farmers, and to promote
biodiversity conservation, particularly in the tropics. This is possible by
constant supply of multiple important goods and services, and by
increasing land productivity and rural incomes. However, the
importance of agroforestry has received recently high attention from
both industrialized and developing countries. It provides sustainable
and low-cost opportunities to mitigate climate change by reducing
greenhouse gases (GHGs) concentrations in the atmosphere, and as
natural adaptation measure to climate change effects. Current global
prediction models show that area under agroforestry management will
increase substantially. Thus, it reveals even more opportunity to
capture and store CO 2 (C sequestration) and to enhance GHGs sinks. In
conclusion, this paper highlighs efforts to incorporate agroforestry into
national REDD+ strategies in Africa.
