Mozambique to plant 100 million trees on battered coast

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A river mouth along the Pemba peninsula in Cabo Delgado Province is pictured on May 19, 2021. (Photo by JOHN WESSELS / AFP)

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AFP) – Mozambique, whose coastline has been ravaged by rising sea levels and tropical storms, announced plans on Tuesday to plant over 100 million trees to restore its battered mangroves.

Large portions of mangroves along the country’s 2,500-kilometre-long (1,500-mile-long) coastline have been decimated by high seas and the harvesting of firewood for charcoal.

This video grab made from hand out aerial video footage taken by UNICEF on January 24, 2021 shows widespread flooding in the Buzi area of Mozambique after the landfall of Cyclone Eloise. – Tropical Cyclone Eloise made landfall around 2:30am on January 23, with wind speeds of 160 kilometres per hour. The worst of the storm’s winds are over, but flooding remains a major threat in the days to come. With many key communications systems down, UNICEF emergency teams are on the ground assessing the situation to design quick and efficient relief response. The immediate identified needs are shelter, food, water, medical attention and the protection of children from abuse and exploitation, UNICEF said. (Photo by Bruno Pedro / UNICEF / AFP)

The Ministry of Sea and Inland Waters said it plans to plant up to a 100 million trees over the next three decades in the central provinces of Sofala and Zambezia spanning 185,000 hectares of mangrove forests.

“This 185,000 is effectively the size of Paris, Manhattan and London all put together. It’s never been done at this scale,” said Vahid Fotuhi whose Gulf-based company Blue Forest, is partially funding the project and providing mapping technology.

The project, which will use satellite imagery to spot badly deforested areas in need of planting, aims to offset some 200,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year, equivalent to taking 50,000 fossil-fuel-burning cars off the road.

© Agence France-Presse