Mozambique

The way in which forest land is owned directly influences the status of the forest, its condition and the way in which it is managed. The greater the security of local forest tenure, the stronger the interest and will of the community towards its security.

The eastern African coastal strip contains a tiny chain of patches of lowland tropical dry forest. They were previously considered to be of low conservation priority in terms of endemism and species diverstiy, but research since the mid-1980s has shown that their biological richness is comparable to other important tropical forest types in Africa.

The project "Enhancing land reform strategies for sustainable livelihoods in southern Africa" has two main components: a land reform review and a questionnaire survey in a selected district. It was implemented in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, Botswana and South Africa.

The document presents the results of a survey and proposes a generic programme of action for wetlands conservation which could be adapted for implementation in SADC member states. It gives an overview of wetland types in southern Africa, highlighting key characteristics and important attributes.

The African elephant is the largest living land mammal. It once inhabited most of the continent, from the Mediterranean coast down to its south tip. This picture of elephant range today is one of scattered, fragmented populations south of the Sahara Desert. Estimates suggested that elephant populations had more than halved in several areas between 1981-87.