Boromo – In a significant operation, the Balé forest management unit seized five hundred bags of fraudulently produced charcoal in the classified forest of Dibon on October 24, 2023. This seizure followed a month-long investigation, initiated after the unit was alerted by local populations on September 6, 2023.
According to Burkina Information Agency, The director of the Balé management unit, water and forest captain Landegma Ouédraogo, reported that their search operations initially located the carbonization site deep in the forest. By the end of October, four individuals responsible for the illegal activity were arrested. These individuals, identified as young people from the central plateau working for residents in Ouagadougou, were subjected to forestry transactions, and their production was confiscated.
Captain Landegma highlighted the significant environmental impact of these activities on the Dibon forest, a crucial ecological network. The illegal charcoal production, coupled with farming and herding activities, is causing severe degradation. Despite multiple awareness sessions and meetings, the forest’s condition remains unchanged, with increasing demographic pressure.
The Dibon forest, created in 1954 and covering 24 thousand hectares, stretches across the rural communes of Founzan and Koti in the Tuy province. It adjoins the north of the classified forest of the two Balé, spanning 57 thousand hectares. These forests are expected to merge to form the Deux Balé National Park. They have been under the supervision of the National Office of Protected Areas (OFINAP) since 2008.
The absence of a unit post in Koty and the forest’s remote location, over 100 km from Boromo, pose challenges to curbing illegal activities, despite the efforts of the agents and support from OFINAP.