Forests impact on human lives in many ways. They serve as safe places of solitude for animals and habitat for biological diversities. Forests support recreational activities and provide important natural resource for generations of people. Many rural populations including millions of impoverished people throughout the world are dependent on forests for their way of life. In other words, forests and their resources are important sources of food, shelter and livelihood.
When you are citing the document, use the following link http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/3597

Jonathan, Emeka Nwosu

Electronic Sumy State University Institutional Repository

Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   12 УДК 338.48 : 504,12 : 630*2     FOREST ECONOMICS AND THE NEED FOR CONSERVATION: THE NIGERIAN CHALLENGE  Jonathan Emeka Nwosu, Student Sumy State University, 2, Rimskogo-Korsakova St., 40007, Sumy, Ukraine  Forests impact on human lives in many ways. They serve as safe places of solitude for animals and habitat for biological diversities. Forests support recreational activities and provide important natural resource for generations of people. Many rural populations including millions of impoverished people throughout the world are dependent on forests for their way of life. In other words, forests and their resources are important sources of food, shelter and livelihood. Notwithstanding this fact, the loss of forest has a continued downward trend. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), 80 % of original forest that covered the Earth 8,000 years ago has been cleared, fragmented, or degraded by modern society. It was said that over nine million hectares of forest lands are lost each year throughout the world. In Nigeria, the situation is not different. Approximately 350,000 to 400,000 hectare of forest land is lost annually (FAO, 2007).   The degradation of forests has been gone for quite some time. It goes hand in hand with the continuous decline of biodiversity in these habitats (DuToit et al. 2004; Bruner et al. 2001). Without forest conservation there can be no climate protection (Stern, 2008). Local population of countries across the globe predominantly relies on utilizing forest resources. Although many protected areas have been designated in these regions, yet the acreage of natural forests continues to decline. Today only 36 percent of the world‘s forests are primary forests – forests that have never been disturbed by human activities on a large scale (Hirschberger 2007).   In Nigeria, deforestation has been identified as one of the causes of some other environmental problems in the country such as desertification and erosion and loss of biological diversity. Additional forest logging and timber production, oil and gas drilling as well as coal mining are all factors contributing to loss of forest in Nigeria. Several efforts to preserve the forests in Nigeria have been made, yet its decline has continued. The essence of this paper, therefore, is to identify the causes for the lost of forest around the globe with particular interest in Nigeria and to suggest ways of effective forest conservation.  Key words: Nigeria, deforestation, forest resources, degradation, biodiversity conservation, sustainable forest management.  INTRODUCTION Forests are central to all human life because they provide a diverse range of resources. In fact, over 40 % of the world‘s oxygen, according to research, is produced by rainforests. Forests purify water and mitigate natural hazards such as floods. They also contain roughly 90 percent of the world's terrestrial biodiversity (Stern, 2008). To put it differently, forests contribute to all other forms of life on Earth, because they have various environmental roles. They are globally important in regulating climate and locally important in sustaining communities and supporting biodiversity by offering habitat for the majority of the globe‘s species. They regulate water and other nutrient cycles; filter pollutants from the air; reduce the rate of global warming by absorbing the greenhouse gas, like carbon dioxide. The amount of carbon in forests is estimated to exceed the amount of carbon currently in the Atmosphere. Forests Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014 13 reduce soil erosion with their root systems, provide watersheds by absorbing rainfall and releasing it slowly into streams. (Mazulak 2010). According to data from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, deforestation was at its highest rate in the 1990s, when each year the world lost on average 16 million hectares of forest. In the first decade of this century, the rate of deforestation was slightly lower, but still, a disturbingly high 13 million hectares were destroyed annually. Africa also suffers from extensive deforestation, having lost 34 million hectares from 2000 to 2010. Firewood harvesting and charcoal production are important drivers. Four sub-Saharan nations — Nigeria, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo — each cleared more than 300,000 hectares per year (FAO 2012). Global rates of deforestation do not show the full damage done to the world‘s forests. Forest degradation from selective logging, road construction, climate change, and other means compromises the health of remaining forests. Each year the world has less forested area, and the forests that remain are of lower quality. For example, replacing natural old-growth forests with a monoculture of an exotic species greatly reduces biodiversity. Below is a chart showing countries with highest percentage of forest lost. (See figure 1)    Figure 1 – Countries with highest percentage of forest loss Source of data: Global forest map 2012  The degradation of forest and its resources have always been justified with basic reasons. These justifications more or less continued to pose threat to the sustenance of forest and its resources across the globe. Some of the threats to forest are summarized in the table below, showing the activities that have brought about them, reasons, main effects and the primary regions where it is predominantly practiced (see table 1). Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   14 Table 1 – Basic threats to forest: cross-regional analysis Activities Reasons Main Effects Primary Regions Bush clearing (also known as clear-cutting) Urban development  Pollution, erosion, habitat destruction Global (All Regions)  Timber harvesting Erosion, carbon  dioxide production, habitat loss, desertification Russia, China, Mexico Agriculture, livestock Erosion, degradation of soil quality, habitat loss, desertification Africa (predominantly Nigeria), Central America, South America Mining Pollution, mountain destruction North America, Africa,(Ghana and Nigeria) Invasive species  Intentional or accidental release of Nonnative plants Ecosystem destruction  Global Vineyards Loss of native animals, insects North America, Europe Urban tree planting Programs Possible invasive species North America, Europe Illegal drug cultivation Pollution, erosion, habitat destruction South America, North America, Asia Fragmentation Development Habitat degradation Global Vehicle Roads Recreation, road-building Soil erosion, transmittance of disease North America, South America, Australia, Asia Conversion to monoculture Commercial tree plantations Loss of native animals, insects South America Climate change Vehicles, population growth, industrial waste Pollution, habitat loss, disease and pests, ecosystem destruction, desertification Global Table is reconstructed by author. Source of data: Maczulak 2010  The Nigerian National Environmental Summit of 2008 listed the following as the key environmental challenges in Nigeria:  – deforestation and land degradation; – biological diversity depletion; – erosion; – drought and desertification; – flooding; – pollution (marine, coastal, industrial); – waste disposal; – climate change. Among these environmental problems, loss of forest areas (deforestation) has been identified as one of the main causes of biodiversity depletion, desertification and drought and other environmental problems, such as erosion and flooding. Invariably, this means that deforestation contributes to all the major environmental problems in Nigeria Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014 15 The rate of the loss of primary forests in Nigeria ranked among the highest in the world as undisturbed forest cover decreased by 53.5 % from 25,951 square kilometers in 1976 to 12,114 square kilometers in 1991 (Formecu,1988). The worst deforestation rate of primary forest in Nigeria occurred between 2000 and 2005. This is represented in the chart below (see figure 2).  Figure 2 – Deforestation chart representing five most affected countries,  2000–2005 [Source of data: Mongabay, 2006]  Within this year under review (2000–2005), 5.7 % of Nigerian forest was deforested ranking the highest among the five countries with the highest deforestation rate namely: Viet Nam 5.5 %, Cambodia 2.9 %, Sri Lanka 1.6 % and Malawi 1.5 %. Again, the table below shows that by 2005, forest cover in Nigeria had an estimate of about 11,089,000 hectares. Wooded land was estimated at 5,495,000 hectares and primary forest at 326,000 hectares. The total land area was estimated at 92,377,000 hectares. In 2010, it was 9,100,000 – total forest area; 8,234,000 – wood land; 336,000 – primary forest. When these figures are compared from 1990 to 2010, it clearly shows that there was a continuous downward trend of loss of forest in Nigeria except for an improvement on wood land. These facts are represented distinctively in table below (see table 2).  Table 2 – Estimated hectare of forest cover and wooded land in Nigeria within 1990, 2000, 2005, 2010 Period Total Forest Areas Other wood Land Primary Forests Plantations Unit 1990  17,234,000 9,717,000 1,556,000 251000 Hectare 2000  13,137,000 6,902,000    736,000 316000 Hectare 2005 11,089,000 5,495,000    326,000 349000 Hectare 2010 9,100,000 8,234,000    336,000 468000 Hectare Table is reconstructed by author. [Source of data: Mongabay] 0123456Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   16 According to the revised deforestation figures of ten most affected countries from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Nigeria has lost an average of 55.7 % of its forest areas, again ranking highest among countries whose forest areas have been lost. The pyramid chart below gives the details (see Figure 3).   Figure 3 –Percentage of lost forest areas among the most affected countries    Source of data: www.illegal-logging.info  In Nigeria, ―70 % of the population, approximately, depends largely on biomass-based fuels which is said to be 0.4 metric tons of fuel wood, average per person. This invariably increases the rate of deforestation which has been estimated at approximately 350ha per year‖ (Obioh & Fagbenle, 2009). According to data of International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Nigeria is home to 1,417 known species of fauna and at least 4,715 species of vascular plants. The degradation of forest invariably means the loss of these species and other biological diversity. In the view of Mathew (2001), he attributed the loss of forest in Nigeria to indiscriminate conversion of the forest for agricultural use and fuel wood extraction and the use of marginal land for agricultural purposes. Other factors that have necessitated the loss of forest in Nigeria include: animal grazing, indiscriminate bush burning, logging of trees and poverty. The latter have driven the rural population to depend on the forest and its resources for survival. From the above, one could sum up that economic and agricultural reasons contribute largely to loss of forest in Nigeria. Increasing population is another reason for the rampant loss of forest in Nigeria. The 1991 census puts Nigerian population figure at 89.2 million. By 2006, it was 140.1 million and by 2013, Nigeria has a population estimate of about 170 million people. So it follows that the more the population, the more the forests go down because of increased dependence and the need for shelter. Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014 17 Also with increased population, wooded land disappears for various urban developmental projects. Inefficient public regulating agencies with lack of clear roles and responsibilities has also encouraged deforestation in Nigeria. There are not enough policy instruments and conservation measures aimed at sustaining the forest and its resources, and where these have existed, they have not been effective. For example, most forests are left at the mercy of local people who are paid stipends by illegal loggers just to have their way. Again mining and oil drilling have had the worst impact on Nigerian forests, yet the activities of the oil companies seem to go unchecked.  CONCLUSION From the foregoing, it is evident that loss of forest is on a high side in Nigeria, yet only few steps have been taken to arrest this trend. However, lost of forest can be controlled if not curbed in Nigeria if the following steps will be considered:  First and foremost, Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) practice should be inculcated into the Nigerian environmental law and adequate punishment stipulated for offenders. SFM attempts to ensure a balance between the objectives of conservation and the use of forest resources. It means making use of forests and it resources in a way and at a rate that allows them to maintain their long-term health and fulfill ecological, economic, social and cultural functions now and in the future. When this practice is put into law, it will inevitably checkmate degrading forest activities such as unmonitored oil drilling and mining, illegal logging, unrestricted animal grazing, indiscriminate bush burning and other activities that have encouraged loss of forest and woodland in Nigeria. Secondly, effective machinery for mass enlightenment and orientation campaign on the use of forest and its sustainability should be put in place. This will invariably raise the awareness level of the people on how to properly treat forest and its resources. Most of the degrading activities, that were carried out on forests in Nigeria, were as a result of ignorance. Many local people do not understand the negative effect their activities have on the forest. They believe the forest is a natural endowment that should serve their needs without restraint. To realize this objective, ‗all hands must be put to desk‘. This means the government should not be left alone to do this. All stake holders – Nature Conservation Unions, NGO organizations, Community leaders, the educational system etc., must actively be involved in this enlightenment and orientation process.  Finally, The Forest Department of the Ministry of Environment should come up with operational forest protection policy that will restrict potentially damaging activities. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a protected area is: ―a clearly defined geographical space, recognized, dedicated and managed, through legal or other effective means, to achieve the long-term conservation of nature with associated ecosystem services and cultural values‖. Although this policy is folled: for example, there are 8 national parks in Nigeria, 1,129 forest reserves, 30 game reserves, 5 game sanctuaries and thousands of gazette forest reserves and grazing areas. However, inadequate mechanism of policy realization; uncoordinated implementation of strategic direction of government, and lack of operational budget have rendered many of forest conservation efforts – redundant and Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   18 ineffective. Therefore, the government should re-strategize and re-enact operational and effective policies that will not only achieve a long-term conservation of forest and woodland but will strengthen the existing policies and put them to work.  REFERENCES 1. Akinbami J. An Integrated Strategy for Sustainable Forest–energy environment Interactions in Nigeria / J. Akinbami // Journal of Environmental Management. ScienceDirect, 2003. –Vol. 69, No 2. –Р. 115–128.  2. Maczulak A. Conservation: Protecting Our Plant Resources / A. Maczulak. – New York, 2010. – 200 p. 3. Anderson D. Conservation in Africa: People, Policies & Practice / D. Anderson, R. Grove. –Cambridge university press, 1988. – 71 p.  4. The Value of the World‘s Ecosystem Services and Natural Capital / B. Hannon, K. Limberg et al. // Nature. –1997, No 387. – P. 253–260. 5. Natural Resource Conservation / D. D. Chiras, J. P. Reganold and S. O. Owen. – 9th ed., N. J. : Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River. – 2004. 6. Dodge J. Clear-cutting, Nature Blamed for Landslides. Olympia (Wash.) Olympian (11 January 2008). Handwerk Brian. ―Louisiana Coast Threatened by Wetlands Loss‖ // National Geographic News. – 9 February 2005. – P. 20–26  7. Hays S. P. Conservation and the Gospel of Efficiency on Progressive Era / S. P. Hays. – University of Pittsburgh Press, 1959. – 297 p. 8. Ikporukpo B. C. Managing oil pollution in Nigeria: In Sada P.O & Odemerho F. O. (eds.) /  B. C. Ikporukpo // Environmental issues and management in Nigerian development. – Ibadan, Nigeria : Evans Brothers Ltd., 1988. – P. 224–229. 9. Knowles D. B. Native Tree Restoration on Abandoned Land in Costa Rica / D. B. Knowles,  A. C. Leopold. – Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 1997. – 160 p. 10. Nash Roderick Wilderness and the American Mind (3rd ed. 1982) the standard intellectual history. Pinchot Gifford (1922): "Conservation Policy".  Encyclopedia Britannica (12th ed.). 11. Nigeria‘s Threatened Environment: A National Profile / NEST. – Ibadan, Nigeria : Nigerian Environmental Study, 1991. – 50 p. 12. Odjugo P. A. General Overview of Climate Change Impacts in Nigeria / P. A. Odjugo // Journal of Human Ecology. – 2010. – Vol. 29, No 1. – P. 47–55.  13. Okojie J. A. Misuse of Renewable Natural Resources and Environmental Degradation /  J. A. Okojie // A Paper presented at the symposium to mark the African Year of the Environment in Ogun state. – Abeokuta, June, 1991. – 25 p. 14. Omofonmwan S. I. The Challenges of Environmental Problems in Nigeria / S. I. Omofonmwan, G. I. Osa-Edoh // Journal of Human Ecology. – 2008. – Vol. 23, No 1. – P. 53–57. 15. Ugboma M. U. Environmental Information Provision in Nigeria : The Case Study of Oil Producing Communities / M. U. Ugboma // African Journal of Library, Archives & Information Science. - 2002. Vol. 12 (2). – P. 189–199. 16. Woodwell George M. Forests in a Full World: An Excellent Overview of Current Threats and Issues in Global Forestry / George M. Woodwell. – New Haven : Conn Yale University Press, 2002. – 186 p.  Надійшла до редакції 25 січня 2014 р.        

Forest economics and the need for conservation: the nigerian challenge

SocioEconomic Challenges Journal (Sumy State University)

Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   12 
УДК 338.48 : 504,12 : 630*2 
 
   FOREST ECONOMICS AND THE NEED FOR CONSERVATION: 
THE NIGERIAN CHALLENGE 
 
Jonathan Emeka Nwosu, Student 
Sumy State University, 
2, Rimskogo-Korsakova St., 40007, Sumy, Ukraine 
 
Forests impact on human lives in many ways. They serve as safe places of solitude 
for animals and habitat for biological diversities. Forests support recreational activities 
and provide important natural resource for generations of people. Many rural 
populations including millions of impoverished people throughout the world are 
dependent on forests for their way of life. In other words, forests and their resources are 
important sources of food, shelter and livelihood. Notwithstanding this fact, the loss of 
forest has a continued downward trend. According to the International Union for 
Conservation of Nature (IUCN), 80 % of original forest that covered the Earth 8,000 
years ago has been cleared, fragmented, or degraded by modern society. It was said that 
over nine million hectares of forest lands are lost each year throughout the world. In 
Nigeria, the situation is not different. Approximately 350,000 to 400,000 hectare of 
forest land is lost annually (FAO, 2007).   
The degradation of forests has been gone for quite some time. It goes hand in hand 
with the continuous decline of biodiversity in these habitats (DuToit et al. 2004; Bruner 
et al. 2001). Without forest conservation there can be no climate protection (Stern, 
2008). Local population of countries across the globe predominantly relies on utilizing 
forest resources. Although many protected areas have been designated in these regions, 
yet the acreage of natural forests continues to decline. Today only 36 percent of the 
world‘s forests are primary forests – forests that have never been disturbed by human 
activities on a large scale (Hirschberger 2007).   
In Nigeria, deforestation has been identified as one of the causes of some other 
environmental problems in the country such as desertification and erosion and loss of 
biological diversity. Additional forest logging and timber production, oil and gas drilling 
as well as coal mining are all factors contributing to loss of forest in Nigeria. Several 
efforts to preserve the forests in Nigeria have been made, yet its decline has continued. 
The essence of this paper, therefore, is to identify the causes for the lost of forest 
around the globe with particular interest in Nigeria and to suggest ways of effective 
forest conservation. 
 
Key words: Nigeria, deforestation, forest resources, degradation, biodiversity 
conservation, sustainable forest management. 
 
INTRODUCTION 
Forests are central to all human life because they provide a diverse range of 
resources. In fact, over 40 % of the world‘s oxygen, according to research, is 
produced by rainforests. Forests purify water and mitigate natural hazards 
such as floods. They also contain roughly 90 percent of the world's terrestrial 
biodiversity (Stern, 2008). To put it differently, forests contribute to all other 
forms of life on Earth, because they have various environmental roles. They are 
globally important in regulating climate and locally important in sustaining 
communities and supporting biodiversity by offering habitat for the majority of 
the globe‘s species. They regulate water and other nutrient cycles; filter 
pollutants from the air; reduce the rate of global warming by absorbing the 
greenhouse gas, like carbon dioxide. The amount of carbon in forests is 
estimated to exceed the amount of carbon currently in the Atmosphere. Forests 
Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014 13 
reduce soil erosion with their root systems, provide watersheds by absorbing 
rainfall and releasing it slowly into streams. (Mazulak 2010). According to data 
from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, deforestation was at its 
highest rate in the 1990s, when each year the world lost on average 16 million 
hectares of forest. In the first decade of this century, the rate of deforestation 
was slightly lower, but still, a disturbingly high 13 million hectares were 
destroyed annually. Africa also suffers from extensive deforestation, having 
lost 34 million hectares from 2000 to 2010. Firewood harvesting and charcoal 
production are important drivers. Four sub-Saharan nations — Nigeria, 
Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo — each 
cleared more than 300,000 hectares per year (FAO 2012). 
Global rates of deforestation do not show the full damage done to the world‘s 
forests. Forest degradation from selective logging, road construction, climate 
change, and other means compromises the health of remaining forests. Each 
year the world has less forested area, and the forests that remain are of lower 
quality. For example, replacing natural old-growth forests with a monoculture 
of an exotic species greatly reduces biodiversity. Below is a chart showing 
countries with highest percentage of forest lost. (See figure 1) 
 
 
 
Figure 1 – Countries with highest percentage of forest loss 
Source of data: Global forest map 2012 
 
The degradation of forest and its resources have always been justified with 
basic reasons. These justifications more or less continued to pose threat to the 
sustenance of forest and its resources across the globe. 
Some of the threats to forest are summarized in the table below, showing 
the activities that have brought about them, reasons, main effects and the 
primary regions where it is predominantly practiced (see table 1). 
Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   14 
Table 1 – Basic threats to forest: cross-regional analysis 
Activities Reasons Main Effects Primary Regions 
Bush clearing 
(also known as 
clear-cutting) 
Urban development 
 
Pollution, erosion, 
habitat destruction 
Global (All Regions) 
 
Timber harvesting Erosion, carbon  dioxide 
production, habitat loss, 
desertification 
Russia, China, Mexico 
Agriculture, 
livestock 
Erosion, degradation of 
soil quality, habitat loss, 
desertification 
Africa (predominantly 
Nigeria), Central 
America, South America 
Mining Pollution, mountain 
destruction 
North America, 
Africa,(Ghana and 
Nigeria) 
Invasive 
species 
 
Intentional or 
accidental release of 
Nonnative plants 
Ecosystem destruction 
 
Global 
Vineyards Loss of native 
animals, insects 
North America, 
Europe 
Urban tree planting 
Programs 
Possible invasive 
species 
North America, 
Europe 
Illegal drug 
cultivation 
Pollution, erosion, 
habitat destruction 
South America, 
North America, Asia 
Fragmentation Development Habitat degradation Global 
Vehicle Roads Recreation, 
road-building 
Soil erosion, 
transmittance of disease 
North America, 
South America, 
Australia, Asia 
Conversion to 
monoculture 
Commercial 
tree plantations 
Loss of native 
animals, insects 
South America 
Climate 
change 
Vehicles, population 
growth, industrial 
waste 
Pollution, habitat loss, 
disease and pests, 
ecosystem destruction, 
desertification 
Global 
Table is reconstructed by author. 
Source of data: Maczulak 2010 
 
The Nigerian National Environmental Summit of 2008 listed the following 
as the key environmental challenges in Nigeria:  
– deforestation and land degradation; 
– biological diversity depletion; 
– erosion; 
– drought and desertification; 
– flooding; 
– pollution (marine, coastal, industrial); 
– waste disposal; 
– climate change. 
Among these environmental problems, loss of forest areas (deforestation) 
has been identified as one of the main causes of biodiversity depletion, 
desertification and drought and other environmental problems, such as erosion 
and flooding. Invariably, this means that deforestation contributes to all the 
major environmental problems in Nigeria 
Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014 15 
The rate of the loss of primary forests in Nigeria ranked among the highest in 
the world as undisturbed forest cover decreased by 53.5 % from 25,951 square 
kilometers in 1976 to 12,114 square kilometers in 1991 (Formecu,1988). The 
worst deforestation rate of primary forest in Nigeria occurred between 2000 and 
2005. This is represented in the chart below (see figure 2). 
 
Figure 2 – Deforestation chart representing five most affected countries,  
2000–2005 [Source of data: Mongabay, 2006] 
 
Within this year under review (2000–2005), 5.7 % of Nigerian forest was 
deforested ranking the highest among the five countries with the highest 
deforestation rate namely: Viet Nam 5.5 %, Cambodia 2.9 %, Sri Lanka 1.6 % 
and Malawi 1.5 %. 
Again, the table below shows that by 2005, forest cover in Nigeria had an 
estimate of about 11,089,000 hectares. Wooded land was estimated at 
5,495,000 hectares and primary forest at 326,000 hectares. The total land area 
was estimated at 92,377,000 hectares. In 2010, it was 9,100,000 – total forest 
area; 8,234,000 – wood land; 336,000 – primary forest. When these figures are 
compared from 1990 to 2010, it clearly shows that there was a continuous 
downward trend of loss of forest in Nigeria except for an improvement on wood 
land. These facts are represented distinctively in table below (see table 2). 
 
Table 2 – Estimated hectare of forest cover and wooded land in Nigeria 
within 1990, 2000, 2005, 2010 
Period 
Total Forest 
Areas 
Other wood 
Land 
Primary 
Forests 
Plantations Unit 
1990  17,234,000 9,717,000 1,556,000 251000 Hectare 
2000  13,137,000 6,902,000    736,000 316000 Hectare 
2005 11,089,000 5,495,000    326,000 349000 Hectare 
2010 9,100,000 8,234,000    336,000 468000 Hectare 
Table is reconstructed by author. 
[Source of data: Mongabay] 
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   16 
According to the revised deforestation figures of ten most affected countries 
from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 
Nigeria has lost an average of 55.7 % of its forest areas, again ranking highest 
among countries whose forest areas have been lost. The pyramid chart below 
gives the details (see Figure 3). 
 
 
Figure 3 –Percentage of lost forest areas among the most affected countries   
 Source of data: www.illegal-logging.info 
 
In Nigeria, ―70 % of the population, approximately, depends largely on 
biomass-based fuels which is said to be 0.4 metric tons of fuel wood, average 
per person. This invariably increases the rate of deforestation which has been 
estimated at approximately 350ha per year‖ (Obioh & Fagbenle, 2009). 
According to data of International Union for the Conservation of Nature 
(IUCN), Nigeria is home to 1,417 known species of fauna and at least 4,715 
species of vascular plants. The degradation of forest invariably means the loss 
of these species and other biological diversity. 
In the view of Mathew (2001), he attributed the loss of forest in Nigeria to 
indiscriminate conversion of the forest for agricultural use and fuel wood 
extraction and the use of marginal land for agricultural purposes. Other factors 
that have necessitated the loss of forest in Nigeria include: animal grazing, 
indiscriminate bush burning, logging of trees and poverty. The latter have 
driven the rural population to depend on the forest and its resources for 
survival. From the above, one could sum up that economic and agricultural 
reasons contribute largely to loss of forest in Nigeria. 
Increasing population is another reason for the rampant loss of forest in 
Nigeria. The 1991 census puts Nigerian population figure at 89.2 million. By 
2006, it was 140.1 million and by 2013, Nigeria has a population estimate of 
about 170 million people. So it follows that the more the population, the more 
the forests go down because of increased dependence and the need for shelter. 
Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014 17 
Also with increased population, wooded land disappears for various urban 
developmental projects. 
Inefficient public regulating agencies with lack of clear roles and 
responsibilities has also encouraged deforestation in Nigeria. There are not 
enough policy instruments and conservation measures aimed at sustaining the 
forest and its resources, and where these have existed, they have not been 
effective. For example, most forests are left at the mercy of local people who are 
paid stipends by illegal loggers just to have their way. Again mining and oil 
drilling have had the worst impact on Nigerian forests, yet the activities of the 
oil companies seem to go unchecked. 
 
CONCLUSION 
From the foregoing, it is evident that loss of forest is on a high side in 
Nigeria, yet only few steps have been taken to arrest this trend. However, lost 
of forest can be controlled if not curbed in Nigeria if the following steps will be 
considered:  
First and foremost, Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) practice should 
be inculcated into the Nigerian environmental law and adequate punishment 
stipulated for offenders. SFM attempts to ensure a balance between the 
objectives of conservation and the use of forest resources. It means making use 
of forests and it resources in a way and at a rate that allows them to maintain 
their long-term health and fulfill ecological, economic, social and cultural 
functions now and in the future. When this practice is put into law, it will 
inevitably checkmate degrading forest activities such as unmonitored oil 
drilling and mining, illegal logging, unrestricted animal grazing, 
indiscriminate bush burning and other activities that have encouraged loss of 
forest and woodland in Nigeria. 
Secondly, effective machinery for mass enlightenment and orientation 
campaign on the use of forest and its sustainability should be put in place. This 
will invariably raise the awareness level of the people on how to properly treat 
forest and its resources. Most of the degrading activities, that were carried out 
on forests in Nigeria, were as a result of ignorance. Many local people do not 
understand the negative effect their activities have on the forest. They believe 
the forest is a natural endowment that should serve their needs without 
restraint. To realize this objective, ‗all hands must be put to desk‘. This means 
the government should not be left alone to do this. All stake holders – Nature 
Conservation Unions, NGO organizations, Community leaders, the educational 
system etc., must actively be involved in this enlightenment and orientation 
process.  
Finally, The Forest Department of the Ministry of Environment should 
come up with operational forest protection policy that will restrict potentially 
damaging activities. According to the International Union for Conservation of 
Nature (IUCN), a protected area is: ―a clearly defined geographical space, 
recognized, dedicated and managed, through legal or other effective means, to 
achieve the long-term conservation of nature with associated ecosystem 
services and cultural values‖. Although this policy is folled: for example, there 
are 8 national parks in Nigeria, 1,129 forest reserves, 30 game reserves, 5 
game sanctuaries and thousands of gazette forest reserves and grazing areas. 
However, inadequate mechanism of policy realization; uncoordinated 
implementation of strategic direction of government, and lack of operational 
budget have rendered many of forest conservation efforts – redundant and 
Вісник СумДУ. Серія “Економіка”,  № 1 '2014   18 
ineffective. Therefore, the government should re-strategize and re-enact 
operational and effective policies that will not only achieve a long-term 
conservation of forest and woodland but will strengthen the existing policies 
and put them to work. 
 
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Надійшла до редакції 25 січня 2014 р. 
 
 
 
 
 
  


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Forest economics and the need for conservation: the nigerian challenge

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