The World Agroforestry Centre is working to develop agroforestry solutions that can ease pressure on the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A story in the Forests News blog of the Center for International Forestry Research outlines how this 790,000-hectare World Heritage site is home to more than 2,000 plant species, including the mountain gorilla. But the park is under pressure from illegal encroachment and exploitation of natural resources.

The Centre is a major partner in the Forests and Climate Change in the Congo (FCCC) project which among other activities is working with local communities to identify a range of agroforestry options and appropriate tree species for communities on the fringes of the park.

“Our role in the project is to lead participatory research, particularly looking at local knowledge about trees and agroforestry practices and at what is driving changes in land use and land cover, both inside and outside Virunga National Park,” says Emilie Smith Dumont, a scientist with the World Agroforestry Centre.

“We are working with [WWF] to help determine what agroforestry options we can design to diversify tree species on farms and improve the delivery of multiple ecosystem services.”

The Centre has documented trends in the area, such as fragmentation of arable lands, reduced crop diversity, a reduction in the cultivation of perennial cash crops such as tea, coffee and pyrethrum, soil erosion and growing pest problems. These are driven by several factors, including increased population and migration, conflict and dependence on wood for energy and construction. As a result, people are exploiting forest resources to meet their needs.

Dumont says agroforestry practices such as fruit trees around homesteads and trees to improve erosion control on slopes can help to provide a range of products and services to local people.

Read the full story: Outside a national park, agroforestry helping to save forests inside the park