OFVi 2024 seminar

The event brought together 73 participants, 49 of whom were able to make the journey to Bordeaux, in the auditorium of the INRAE Bordeaux Nouvelle Aquitaine centre, and enjoy a moment of conviviality. The day was rich in presentations and fruitful scientific discussions.

The event provided an opportunity to : 

• Report on the first research and capacity-building initiatives undertaken since 2023: many of the researchers involved were able to present their work;

• Bring together and involve the French scientific community in OFVi by associating the stakeholders and evaluating the opportunities for opening up the partnership by seeking new funding or by integrating existing programmes such as the PEPR FORESTT. Our seminar preceded the PEPR launch seminar in order to promote synergy with the researchers involved in the programme;

• Structure partnerships in order to guarantee the co-construction of this initiative and clearly identify the issues, proposals and needs of our partner countries, with priority given to the Congo Basin. Pending the forthcoming formalisation of partnerships, some of our invited scientific collaborators were able to speak at the event: Dr Conan Obame from the Agence Gabonaise d'Etudes et d'Observations Spatiales (AGEOS), Prof Suspense Ifo from the Université Marien N'Gouabi (UMNG) in the Republic of Congo, and Prof Germain Mbock, Director of the Ecole Nationale des Eaux et Forêt (ENEF) in Cameroon;

• Mobilise the international scientific and teaching community to strengthen OFVi and coordinate with existing initiatives in the region. We listened to a presentation by Nathalie Carisey on the activities of Université Laval in Canada.