29/07/2026
50 TRAINED IN SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT.
Under the umbrella of the GEF-7 Sustainable Luangwa Project, the Wildlife and Environmental Conservation Society of Zambia - WECSZ recently coordinated and implemented a rigorous training programme on the Sustainable Management of Community Forests in the Upper Luangwa River Catchment in Mafinga District - Muchinga Province. The 3-weeks training convened 50 community members (from 5 Community Forest Management Groups - CFMGโs), who were recently designated as Honorary Forest Officers - HFOโs by the Forestry Department.
As a capacity-building initiative, the training aimed at strengthening community participation in forest governance by equipping the selected community members with the knowledge, practical skills and ethical standards required to support forest protection, law enforcement, community sensitisation and sustainable community forest management in the Upper Luangwa River Catchment Area.
The 50 HFOโs, comprising of 31 men and 19 women, were adequately trained and equipped to support the implementation of the Forests Act No. 4 of 2015; Conduct forest patrols, inspections and reporting of forest offences; and promote sustainable forest management within the 5 Community Forest Management Areas. Further, the training enhanced the HFOโs professionalism, integrity, accountability, conflict resolution and occupational health and safety skills. It also strengthened their practical competencies in forest inventory, valuation of forest products and community engagement.
Facilitated by a concerted team of the Zambia Forestry College - ZFC, Department of National Parks and Wildlife - DNPW, and the Forestry Department - FD, the training followed a structured curriculum that enabled participants to gain practical knowledge and skills through simulations, field demonstrations and hands-on exercises. To legitimize the acquired knowledge and skills, Competence Certificates accredited by the Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training Authority (TEVETA) were issued to the HFOโs by ZFC.
The training encompassed 2 crucial phases i.e. Phase 1 focused on Integrated Law Enforcement & Field Operations, and Phase 2 focused on Forestry Governance and Sustainable Forest Management. Phase 1 facilitated by DNPW strengthened the participants' competencies in wildlife legislation, patrol operations, evidence handling, first aid, court procedures, safeguards and human rights.
On the other hand, Phase 2 facilitated by ZFC enhanced the participantsโ competencies in sustainable forest management and ecosystem services, valuation of timber and non-timber forest products, Community-Based Licensing Systems, Forests Act No. 4 of 2015 and related legislation, Forest inventory techniques and sample plot establishment, among others.
It is anticipated that the trained HFOโs will ensure forest protection, enforce forestry legislation, and promote sustainable utilisation of forest resources across the 5 Community Forest Management Areas (CFAโs), which buffer the Mafinga National Forest Reserve - the source of the Luangwa River. These officers will be conserving and protecting a total of 7,000 hectares of forest cover in the catchment area.
This training forms part of the Sustainable Luangwa Projectโs conservation approach, which seeks to safeguard the Upper Luangwa River catchment through sustainable forest management, restoration of degraded forest ecosystems, and promotion of climate-smart livelihoods. This project is a GRZ initiative being undertaken through the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment - Zambia and led by WWF Zambia , with support from the Global Environment Facility - GEF 7.
