ZIMBABWE on Friday joined the world in commemorating the International Day of Forests and officially launched the tree of the year.

The day was put on the international calendar following its official proclamation by the United Nations General Assembly in 2012 and is now annually celebrated on March 21.

Signatories to the proclamation seek to make a contribution towards addressing the perennial challenges of deforestation and forest degradation.

The tree of the year is the Piliostigma thonningii, commonly known as Camel’s foot or Monkey bread in English; or Ihabahaba in Ndebele and Musekesa or Mutukutu in Shona.

The small to medium-size tree can be found naturally growing in woodlands or wooded grasslands and is browsed by both livestock and wildlife. Its leaves can be chewed by humans to quench thirst. The pods are a very nutritious fodder whose powder can be mixed with the powder of another fodder tree, Dichrostachys cenerea (Mupangara in Shona; Ugagu in Ndebele) to produce rapid cattle fattening feed for those involved in fattening cattle for beef. The Musekesa tree can be propagated easily from its scarified seed.

The official commemoration was held at a hotel in Bulawayo.

The Minister of Environment, Climate Change, Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu, who was the guest of honour, said the 2021 commemoration is being held under the global theme: “Forest Restoration: a path to recovery and well-being.”

“Deforestation and forest degradation has resulted in Zimbabwe losing its forest resources at an average rate of approximately 262 349ha per annum in the last decade. The theme comes at a time we have embarked on the United Nations Decade of Ecosystem Restoration (2021- 2030),” said Minister Ndlovu.

Locally, the minister said, the theme finds its rightful space as the Natural Resources Sector is implementing a plethora of restoration programmes, including activities under the Zambezi Valley Biodiversity Project (2018 to 2024); the African Landscape Restoration initiative (AFR100) which feeds into, and contributes towards the Bonn Challenge, with a target of 2 million hectares of degraded forest land to be restored in Zimbabwe by 2030.

“Further, under the Global Environment Facility Phase 7 which is currently being finalised, Zimbabwe targets to restore degraded dryland ecosystems in identified parts of Masvingo, Midlands and Manicaland Provinces,” said Minister Ndlovu.
During the global virtual commemoration, it was highlighted that deforestation is mainly driven by land clearing for agriculture-related purposes, settlement expansion, tree cutting for energy (firewood and charcoal production) and for infrastructural development (roads and powerlines).

The minister said the choice of the tree of the year is not coincidental as it comes to compliment efforts to revive agriculture through adoption of climate friendly methods and to acknowledge the good rainfall season.

“Due to the good rainfall season, our grain production is set to be high. Our view therefore is to compliment the anticipated gains by drawing farmers attention to livestock production and providing this very nutritious stockfeed. This should no doubt add impetus to the growth of this sector. Leading to the country being food self-sufficient, a key factor for Zimbabwe to attain our Vision 2030.

I urge you all to go out there and either propagate it in nurseries, or identify where it is being raised in preparation for growing it in the forthcoming National Tree Planting Day festivities for the 2021/22 rain season, said Minister Ndlovu. — @SeehYvonne