ERAIFT now has 61 DESS graduates from ten African countries: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Republic of Guinea, Madagascar, Niger and Togo. The call for candidature for the fourth promotion of ERAIFT, starting mid-June 2006 has been launched.

"Some 47 percent of Africa's tropical forest is located in DRC" says Sami Mankoto, in charge of this experimental postgraduate training in tropical forest management. "With students on secondment from jobs in government ministries, the private sector and non-governmental organisations, we believe that the unique mix of ecology, economics and social sciences of the course will prepare them to find sustainable ways to reconcile the competing demands on tropical forests." One challenge the course addresses is to find alternatives to firewood as an energy source for local people - a major source of deforestation.

Training specialists and decision-makers to apply the ecosystem approach in situ to forest management in Africa The aim is to 'africanize' forest management by training local specialists to take over from their expatriate counterparts. This new generation of specialists and decision-makers will be able to use a holistic approach and associate information from fields such as ecology, economy, social sciences and alternative technologies. The education delivered allows graduates to contribute to human development that is sustainable and respective of the environment. click on the picture

Courses and admission
ERAIFT has courses at Master (DESS) and Ph.D (doctorat) levels. Professors are recruited from universities in Africa, Europe and North America. UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere (MAB) has published a guide on integrated management of tropical forests, framing the interdisciplinary and systemic approach of the training. The courses focuse on:

• integrated management of tropical forests
• collaboration with local communities
• improving conditions for local populations and sustainable development

Conditions for admission of candidates (application form available here)
Master level:

• hold a university degree in the exact and natural sciences or in the social and human sciences equivalent to a Bachelor degree
• have at least 3 years' relevant professional experience

Ph.D level:

• hold a DEA or the equivalent of one year post-graduate studies (as decided by the admission commission). In case of partial equivalence, this commission may impose a complementary programme;
• have at least 5 years' relevant professional experience. Request detailed programme (opens business card) of courses (alternately, contact directly the school at Kinshasa).

Main results
The school has acquired powerful computers and other equipment related from Bowie State University (USA) and established a laboratory for GIS mapping. ERAIFT students have also prepared a vegetation map of the forest province of Bandundu in Congo DR, within the framework of practical courses and work in remote sensing and digital mapping. The study was supported by the CARPE project (Central African Regional Program for the Environment) of USAID. The regional educational authority CAMES (Conseil africain et malgache pour l'enseignement supérieur) has recognized the Master diplomas (DESS) of ERAIFT, at its 20th Symposium (Côte d'Ivoire, December 2001).

Background
In 1995, UNESCO followed the recommendation of the "Regional seminar on reforestation and scientific cooperation on rational management of African tropical forests" (N'Sele Declaration, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, March 1991) leading to the creation of ERAIFT. The school became operational at the University of Kinshasa (ex-University of Lovanium) at Mont-Amba in April 1999. Run by UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere programme, ERAIFT is supported by the United Nations Development Fund and several sub-Saharan countries (e.g. Congo/Brazzaville, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mauritania) and the Indian Ocean region (e.g. Madagascar). The project was also recently supported by Belgium and countries with embassies in Kinshasa (e.g. France, the Netherlands, Canada, USAID/CARPE). The Director General of UNESCO has set up an International Steering Committee, made up of nominated specialists that are guiding the development of the school, making it better known and contributing to its progress.

Contact S. Mankoto Ma Mbaelele, Programme specialist, Division of Ecological Sciences UNESCO 1, rue Miollis 75732 PARIS (France) Tel: (33.1) 45 68 40 37. Fax: (33.1) 45 68 58 04 E-mail: s.mankoto@unesco.org

More information on tropical forest ecosystems