Introduction
The Angola forestry outlook study is a tool reflecting the general guidelines of the sustainable development of the national forestry sector in a frame period of 20 years from 2000. This study tries to look at carefully all possible factors being internal and external influencing positive and negatively to the development of the sector in the new millennium. The purpose is certainly to assess the implications, draw up scenarios and formulate a national vision for the sector.
The present exercise was carried out through a participatory approach process in which various partners, i.e. government institutions, private sector, NGOs and individual corps direct or indirectly linked to the development forestry sector, gave their contributions to the elaboration of this study.
It is very much expected the Angola forestry outlook study be in line with the Southern Africa forestry outlook study since harmonisation of regional forestry sector and policies are concerned and in turn, contributes as valuable input to the Forestry outlook study for Africa. Taking into account the main objective of the FOSA, it is evident the analysis focuses on the potential of the forestry sector to contribute to the welfare of the local and African population enhancing their economic, social and environmental functions as well as providing good services for their survival. It analyses the status, trends and driving forces shaping African forestry.
FOSA is a request of African countries through the African Forest and Wildlife Commission ( AFWC ) at their 11th meeting held in Dakar, Senegal in April 1998, and it has and continues to have the support of FAO. Moreover, FAO is working in collaboration with African Development Bank and European Commission in the development of FOSA. However FAO has been supporting by World Bank, IGAD, SADC, NGOs, communities as whole and private sector in the implementation of this study in the context of the African continent.
In this context it is expected to have the full support of the recipient country in order to successfully conducting the present study and to achieve encouraging results enabling a smooth and sustainable development of the forest sector until 2020. In other words, Angola government as main beneficiary of the output of the this exercise are called to contribute with all available resources, such qualified professional and technical personnel and other means required for undertaking this kind of task.
The primary objective of FOSA is to serve the forestry sector development needs of African countries, and help the incorporation of a long-term vision into their planning horizons, put national information into a regional context, place forestry into a larger economic and social context, and also provide a better investment opportunities for the forestry sector.
Besides providing a framework for the countries of the region to shape their own national programmes, FOSA will form a basis for the review of forestry portfolios of lending institutions, investors, development partners and private sectors.
Background
Angola is located in the western Africa with 1 600 km of coastline between parallels 4o22' and 18o02'S and longitudes 11o41' and 24o05'E, with a land area equivalent to 1 246 700 km2 and makes a large country within the SADC region, with a total population estimated about 13.400.000 inhabitants in 2000, while life expectancy is estimated at about at about 43 years. (INE 1996). The country is divided into eighteen (18) administrative provinces.
In January of 1996 the population of Angola was estimated at about 12 789 000 inhabitants, with 9.8 of density, with a rate of 42% for urban inhabitants against 58% for rural. According to non-official source of information, there are almost 4 millions of the population living in the capital city of Luanda. These figures appear to be high, but it is true that the country is facing a permanent unrest. The trend is that rural people are constantly seeking refuge to the urban area where the safe is secured by the government. Female population represents 55,6% and 44,4% for male. The major part of the population is concentrated to the coastal zone of the country. This old and long traditional tendency is nowadays accented by the civil war still taking place in the country.
Fifty-three ( 53 ) million hectares are classified as land in Angola. about 43% of the total land area), and 18% or 2.2 million hectares is the current productive forest area. Humid forest comprise 24 000 00 ha, mainly concentrated in the northern part of the country. The forests classified as production cover 23 730 00 ha in the northern with the capacity to produce 326 000 m3 of roundwood per year. The estimates on annual deforestation vary between 0.4 and 1.0%, reaching 40 000 ha/year (FAO/UNEP, 1981). The country presents about 140 000 ha of plantations mainly composed by Eucalyptus and Pinus species, established by private sector during the colonial times with the purpose of pulpwood and woodfuel production for locomotive machines. After the independence the plantations linkage to industry has became very weak as far as the pulp and paper industry has closed, and today the locomotives use other type of energy.
The conservation state of these resources, i.e. natural and man-made forests is very critical and their management as well. These resources are theoretically under forest reserves and national parks, unfortunately non-recognised by international conventions and programmes, occupying about 8 106 000 ha, representing around 6.6% of the national territory, generally located in difficult areas in terms of access due to the unrest situation still devastating the country. These figures are mostly estimates and somehow very conservative since for many decades back, no inventory nor substantial field works have taken place in order to assess the current status of forest resources of parks and reserves.
For the institutional point of view, the forest sector is within the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and especially under the Institute for Forestry Development responsibility, fully represented in all 18 administrative provinces of the country. Apart from IDF there is the National Directorate of Agriculture and Forest, DNAF with double components, i.e. agriculture and forest with special function of policy formulation and guidance. The Ministry of Fisheries and Environment is another government institution taking part to the process of conservation of natural resources with certain links with IDF.
The IDF although very well and broadly represented, this vast and very important sector could contribute significantly to the national economy of the country and welfare of its few people in an immense country still facing a lot of socio-economic problems.
There is an acute scarcity of all kind of resources such administrative and professional personnel to ensure the optimal management and planning and organisational aspects of the sector, poorly staffed in field personnel, scarcity of material and equipment means and constraints related to funding as well, to enable the implementation of programmes and projects already identified. There is a large dependency of the sector vis à vis the government budget, insufficient to ensure its smooth operation, serving just for wages and symbolic salaries, far away to satisfy their basic needs of workers along the month.
Angola is probably the only African country where Forest Law is still non-existent and certainly in the regional context of the SADC. The sector is still using the Forest Ordinance established during the colonial era so-called Decreto no 44 531 of 21.06.1962, still remains the only judicial instrument, including forest, wildlife and inland fisheries, regulating the forestry activities at national level. This instrument was twice submitted to the revision in 1981-82 and in 1989 respectively, but still does not reflect to the reality on the ground. Since last year the regime since independence the forestry sector us committed to the review of all judicial instruments and the activity is still on going process.
