By: Tankiso Moshoeshoe

Hundreds of delegates joined heads at the ICC to discuss future investments in forestry, in Africa’s first World Forestry Congress.

The High-level Dialogue is aimed to explore the types of investments in forests, forestry and forest communities, that contribute best to implementing the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) and the future climate change regimes.

This Dialogue was co-chaired by the Deputy Minister of Agriculture Bheki Cele and the chair of International Advisory Committee Hosny El-Lakany.

International speakers and agricultural ministers were present to address about their SDGs in their forestry sectors.

Director General of Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations Jose Graziano da Silva said that sustainable environment goals aim to address the most serious challenges,
facing the world today.

“This challenge is made much more difficult by the themes of climate change, increasing water, and land scarcity, soil and land degradation.

It is clear that the many challenge facing human kind must be addressed in an integrate way, forests, also contributing to many of other SDGS,” da Silva continued.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of the republic of South Africa, Senzeni Zokwana, said that the National Development has a vision of empowering through our
communities, and should have people to participate fully in the economy, social, political life of the country.

“People should have high quality basic service that enables them to be well nourished, healthy and increasingly skilled. We have supported agriculture where possible, and have
achieved new successful land, from job creation and poverty allegations,” said Zokwana.

There are expectations that the WFC will send strong mass and influence global deliberative -focus on doing more to integrate forests, and other land use especially agriculture.