As soon as they get off the plane, in the moist heat of Libreville, the billboard catches the eye of the traveler: seen from the sky, an endless wooded expanse. Between the peaks of okoumés, this tropical tree much sought after for the manufacture of plywood, symbol of the coat of arms of Gabon, meanders the Ogooué river. A “green paradise” praised by local tourist agencies. “Gabon’s forests can absorb 140 million tonnes of CO2”, proudly displays an advertising sign conveniently installed, a few hours before the launch of the One Forest Summit. The event, dedicated to the protection of tropical forests, is being held on March 1 and 2 in Libreville. A dozen heads of state and government must be present, including Emmanuel Macron. The French president will continue his tour of Angola, Congo Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“We will not win a victory in the fight against climate change without the help of Africa”, pleaded the Elysée before this trip. A green diplomacy logically directed towards the most strategic region of the continent: the Congo Basin, one of the main “green lungs” of the planet. Its forests and peat bogs, natural carbon sinks, alone retain the equivalent of ten years of global CO2 emissions. Something to be interested in urgently, before this reservoir sheltering endangered species – mountain gorillas, forest elephants, chimpanzees and bonobos – is depleted, like others, by deforestation.
“Send a signal” to Gabon and Congo
This laudable cause offers Emmanuel Macron a golden opportunity to return to this underinvested region since 2017. “The heads of state of Gabon and Congo, historically close to the Elysée, have complained behind the scenes of having been snubbed in recent years”, recalls Francis Kpatinde, teacher at Sciences Po Paris. The French president wanted to keep his distance from these old caimans of Françafrique. But the situation quickly changed for France on the continent, plagued by mounting hostility stoked by Paris’ rivals, led by Moscow. In Dakar (Senegal), the walls shout “France, get out!” ; in N’Djamena (Chad), demonstrators protest against France’s support for the junta; in Mali and Burkina Faso, the French soldiers packed up under duress.
Emmanuel Macron wants to stem the contagion at all costs. Even if it means making eyes at the autocrats who were shunned yesterday, at least showing them “a signal of consideration and of the value that we attach to the relationship”, specifies the entourage of the president. First beneficiary of this new “momentum”, Ali Bongo. The President of Gabon, whose territory is covered by more than 80% of forests, is the co-organizer, with France, of the One Forest Summit, a showcase for the environmental policy that he wants to put forward – we would forget almost that this country, sometimes nicknamed “the little emirate”, derives 60% of its income from oil…
In any case, the summit displays its ambition: to best preserve the three forest basins of the planet: the Amazon, the Congo basin and the Borneo-Mekong basin, in Southeast Asia. “We want to federate a group of heads of state and government to increase global efforts on forest regeneration, explains to L’Express the Gabonese Minister of the Environment, Lee White. For the moment we have not strong enough commitment and on all continents, we see that the forest is disappearing.”
Ways to preserve “carbon sinks”
The forest countries, whose dense canopies absorb the CO2 emissions of the most polluting states, mostly located in the north of the planet, are now demanding compensation in exchange for the protection of these precious carbon sinks. The summit will therefore have to work to find “innovative” financing options. Should countries be helped to improve the use of the highly controversial carbon credits? These credits purchased by companies – often large groups – to offset their greenhouse gas emissions are supposed to finance reforestation projects, the fight against deforestation or the development of renewable energy. But these credits are, in reality, not very effective. Worse, they sometimes fund projects that violate the rights of residents, according to a recent investigation by the British newspaper Tea Guardian. To rectify these abuses, France pleads for the creation of “biodiversity certificates”, a kind of label including more broadly the protection of biodiversity and the respect of local populations, a device whose contours remain vague.
The debates will also focus on the exploitation of fossil and mining resources by the Congo Basin countries. Rich in oil and rare metals, these States defend their development to finance their development. “We must find a solution for these countries, to help them, in the long term, to avoid extractive mining activities, which contribute to deforestation, without putting these forests under glass”, warns Sébastien Treyer, director general of the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations.
The limits of “green diplomacy”
In Libreville, Emmanuel Macron will be accompanied by fifteen French business leaders to promote the development of a more sustainable forestry industry, and forge new partnerships with African countries, where France has lost many markets over the past twenty years. years to the benefit of China, Turkey or India. Unsurprisingly, Emmanuel Macron’s “green diplomacy” is not devoid of interests… not always very green, them. In Angola, the president will officially talk about agriculture, but behind-the-scenes discussions will focus above all on oil supplies in this country, which has become Africa’s leading crude oil producer.
Elsewhere, the interest is more political. “In Gabon and Congo, historically close to Paris, disenchantment with France is growing and the risk of dropping out is real,” said François Gaulme, associate researcher at Ifri’s Sub-Saharan Africa Center. Witness Gabon’s recent accession to the Commonwealth, as well as its abstention during the vote at the UN, on February 23, on the resolution demanding the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory. On March 2, 2022, this same country voted for the resolution condemning Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
Regaining the vote of Gabon – and other abstainers, such as Congo – will not be an easy task. Moreover, France’s glances at unpopular autocrats could further fuel public anger towards Paris in the countries concerned. “Emmanuel Macron is going to Gabon in the middle of a presidential election year, recalls analyst Francis Kpatinde. We cannot prevent public opinion and opponents from thinking that it is a boost to the incumbent, Ali Bongo.