Bamboo Forest
By Ngalame Elias
The African Forest Forum (AFF), in partnership with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), organized a one day online webinar under the project “Scaling Youth-Led Climate Innovations for a Greener Africa: Enhancing Compliance with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) through Sustainable Land Management and Landscape Restoration“
The discussions with experts were held on the theme ‘From Groves to Green Jobs: Innovative Bamboo Business Models and Technologies for Climate-Resilient Youth Employment in Africa’
Accordingly the discussions were the fourth in AFF’s series bringing together young people, researchers, policymakers, private-sector actors, and youth-led businesses to examine why Africa’s bamboo potential remains largely untapped.
In his opening remarks, Prof. Labode Popoola, Executive Secretary–CEO, African Forest Forum emphasized on the importance of the discussion that is expected to increase stakeholder understanding of the scale and feasibility of bamboo-based green job creation in Africa, increase understanding of bamboo’s potential in climate-resilient livelihoods amongst others.
A concept note by AFF notes that Africa holds 4.56 million hectares of bamboo across 48 countries – 12.3% of the world’s bamboo resources – yet production and value addition remain underdeveloped. By comparison, China’s bamboo sector employs over 29 million people and generates more than US$74 billion annually.
With Africa’s youth population projected to grow by 132 million by 2030, closing this gap represents a genuine multimillion-job opportunity from a renewable, fast-growing native resource. Presenters at the webinar came from China, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, and Cameroon and dshare experiences and practical solutions for unlocking bamboo’s employment and enterprise potential at scale.
Various topics discussed during the exchange included “China’s bamboo industrialization; lessons and opportunities for Africa by Dr Jinhe Fu, Bamboo business models of SMEs in Vietnam by Dr Tran Van, Vietnam, the multiple roles of bamboo: From Land Restoration to Livelihoods byRene Kaam — Director, INBAR-Central Africa, Cameroon.
There were also discussions on ,Bamboo for Climate-Resilient Livelihoods: Lessons from Ethiopia’s Bamboo Development by Dr. Zenebe Mekonnen — Bamboo and Climate Change Expert, Ethiopian Forest Development as well as, The Private Sector as an Engine for Bamboo Development: Innovation, Value Chains and Policy Perspectives by Robert Sunya — Private Sector, We Do Bamboo, Kenya.
Moderated by Tefera Belay of AFF the discussions had as objectives to, examine Barriers: Assess the technological, policy, and market barriers that have limited bamboo value-chain development in Africa to date.
Raise Awareness: Explore opportunities for integrating bamboo-based enterprises into land restoration, climate adaptation, and green job creation for youth and communities.
Facilitate Dialogue: Convene government, private sector, development partners, and youth groups to identify actionable, scalable solutions.
Showcase Models: Present successful bamboo-based business and restoration models from African countries alongside transferable lessons from China and Vietnam.
Generate Recommendations: Produce policy recommendations and partnerships to advance the sector.