What You Need to Know
Recent research indicates that Africa’s forests have transitioned from being carbon sinks to sources of carbon emissions, emphasizing the urgent need for action to protect these vital ecosystems. The study highlights the significant loss of biomass in African forests, driven primarily by human activities, including agriculture and infrastructure development, which contribute to climate change.
Africa. Recent research indicates that forests in Africa have transitioned from being a carbon sink to a source of carbon emissions, underscoring the urgent need for action to protect the world’s significant natural climate stabilizers.
The study confirms that this alarming shift, which has occurred since 2010, means that the three major rainforest regions on Earth—Amazon in South America, Southeast Asian forests, and African forests—have changed from allies in combating climate collapse to being part of the problem.
According to experts, human activities are the primary cause of this issue, as farmers—especially large corporations—clear more land for agriculture. Additionally, infrastructure and mining projects have exacerbated the loss of vegetation, along with global warming caused by burning gas, oil, and coal, which undermines the resilience of ecosystems or leads to their collapse.
Scientists found that between 2010 and 2017, African forests lost nearly 106 billion kilograms of biomass annually, equivalent to the weight of about 106 million cars. The broadleaf tropical rainforests in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar, and parts of West Africa have been the most affected.
Africa’s forests cover approximately 6.5 million square kilometers, accounting for 21.8% of the continent’s land area. The Congo Basin is the second-largest area of tropical rainforest in the world, after the Amazon, and is the largest forest area in Africa, spanning nearly 3.7 million square kilometers.
The study was led by researchers from the National Earth Observation Centre at the Universities of Leicester and Sheffield in the UK and Edinburgh in Scotland. Using satellite data and machine learning techniques, the researchers tracked over a decade of changes in the amount of carbon stored in trees and woody plants.
The researchers discovered that widespread forest loss since 2010 has led to an imbalance, causing the continent’s forests to contribute more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.
The researchers state that the results highlight the urgent need for action to halt forest loss; otherwise, the world risks losing one of its most important natural carbon reservoirs.
The World’s Lungs at Risk
The study notes that Brazil launched the “Forever Tropical Forest Facility” initiative, aiming to raise $120 billion to protect forests by paying countries not to harm their forests. However, so far, only a few countries have invested in the initiative.
Professor Heiko Balzter, the lead author and director of the Institute for Future Environment at the University of Leicester, states that the study shows the importance of scaling up global tropical forest financing and establishing better guarantees for their protection.
Four years ago, at the 26th Conference of the Parties in Glasgow, world leaders announced their intention to end deforestation globally by 2030, but progress is not being made quickly enough, according to experts.
Studies indicate that Africa loses nearly 4 million hectares of forest annually, which is almost double the global average between 2010 and 2020, representing the highest rate in the world.
The Global Forest Resources Assessment for 2025 indicates that the global deforestation rate was about 10.9 million hectares annually from 2015 to 2025. While this rate is lower compared to previous years, it remains exceedingly high due to agricultural expansion, particularly for soybean, palm oil, and coffee crops, as well as livestock farming for meat, in addition to natural or man-made forest fires.
Forests cover 31% of the land area and store an estimated 296 gigatons of carbon. They are home to the majority of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity, providing economic and environmental benefits, and acting as natural shields against extreme weather conditions such as storms and floods.
Experts and environmental activists warn that the increasing destruction of forests by major global companies in sectors such as agriculture, food, luxury goods, and timber through their supply chains makes ambitions to halt the climate crisis and prevent massive wildlife losses worldwide increasingly elusive.
Historically, Africa’s forests have played a crucial role in carbon sequestration, helping to mitigate climate change. However, since 2010, alarming trends have emerged, with deforestation rates increasing significantly due to agricultural expansion and industrial activities. This shift not only threatens biodiversity but also exacerbates global warming, making the preservation of these forests more critical than ever.
The Congo Basin, home to the second-largest tropical rainforest globally, has been particularly affected. As the world grapples with climate change, the loss of these forests poses a significant risk to global carbon storage and biodiversity.
