ILLEGAL LOGGING IN EKURI FOREST 

Illegal logging has devastating impact on the environment

We condemn the recent arrest and harassment of Forest Defenders in Ekuri Forest, a biodiverse rainforest in Cross River State. More egregious is the reason for their ordeal: blocking illegal logging. Although the police later released the Forest Defenders with all charges dropped and without bail, some of their rogue personnel reportedly stood guard while the alleged illegal logging continued. These sordid events took place in mid-January, according to the Global Forest Coalition (GFC), citing reports from Nigeria-based Emerging Genderplus Outreach Team (EGOT).

The Ekuri community forest in Cross River State is a 33,600-hectare, community-managed rainforest known for its biodiversity and conservation efforts. Bordering the Cross River National Park, the forest is managed by Old and New Ekuri villages (Nkokoli people), and it acts as a crucial buffer zone for endangered species, including the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, drills, forest elephants, and leopards. Recognised by the UN Equator Initiative in 2004 for its community-led conservation, the forest has faced significant threats, including proposed superhighway construction passing through it and illegal logging activities.

Unfortunately, illegal logging is a national challenge.In many cases, local communities are taken advantage of and given peanuts, while illegal loggers go in and pilfer their heritage. Indeed, what the logger benefits is far more than what the community gets in return. Also, the environmental hazards that accrue to the community are far greater than whatever gains they derive from the sale of their wood. Apart from the loss of biodiversity, illegal logging makes it difficult for the ecosystem to provide the services it usually bestows on the environment. Some areas become prone to landslides, which destroy arable crops and lead to the loss of lives and property.

To compound the challenge, Nigeria’s tree cover is depleting alarmingly. Records show that Nigeria is experiencing one of the world’s highest rates of forest loss, losing roughly 3.7 per cent of its forest cover annually. Estimates suggest that less than 10 per cent, and as low as 3.7–4 per cent of the country’s land area remains under forest, far below the FAO’s recommended 25 per cent. Over 90 per cent of the original forest cover has been lost, with an annual deforestation rate of 350,000 to 400,000 hectares, primarily due to agricultural expansion, logging, and infrastructure development.

The Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, who leads the efforts to tackle biodiversity loss, climate change, and pollution, has expressed concerns about the illegal logging, while reiterating commitment to biodiversity conservation, community-based forest management, and strict enforcement of environmental laws. “In line with the Ministry’s mandate, the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has commenced investigations,” she said. On the issue of illegal logging and deforestation, an environmentalist, Desmond Majekodunmi, has demanded greater accountability from government both at the federal and the states, arguing that “Everything that we need to survive comes from nature, particularly the forests. They are an invaluable resource for life on Earth, and we need to create far more awareness on that.”

 On its part, the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) has described as a very worrying development “that a community forest that has been conserved over the years, globally recognised, and used as a sample plot for international interventions like REDD+ is being subjected to illegal logging.” The NCF Director-General, Joseph Onoja, has also called on the Cross River State government to protect the Ekuri landscape where forest elephants have been sighted. “We have worked closely with the community to protect the forest and ensure that such a rich natural habitat is secured for generations to come, and this we would continue to do.”

Considering the crucial role of forests in Nigeria’s socio-economic growth and the need to prevent avoidable biodiversity loss, authorities in the country must do all that is necessary to stop illegal logging.