On June 21st, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) hosted a significant event in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to support the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100). This event aimed to accelerate forest and farm restoration across Africa by bringing together partners, stakeholders, and community leaders.

AFR100 is a partnership of 34 African countries committed to restoring at least 100 million hectares of degraded land by 2030. With a generous contribution of EUR 40 million from the German government, the AFR programme will provide local communities, including smallholder forest and farm producers and Indigenous Peoples, with direct financial and technical assistance to foster restoration-based businesses and innovations.

The programme, set to run from January 2024 to December 2027, focuses on four main components: strengthening governance capacities, restoring degraded lands, enhancing value-added innovation, and increasing the capacity for local monitoring and communication.

This event marks a significant step towards achieving the ambitious goals of AFR100.