The Forest Conservation Job Day took place online, on Friday May 6th 2022. This Forest Conservation Job day, which was in its first edition, was co-organised by ERAIFT and the association of its alumni gathered within the « Réseau Africain pour le Développement Durable et Intégré (RADDI) ». The Participants to this event were former ERAIFT students and students from the 3rd and 4th Master's classes actually in training.
The Forest Conservation Job day is the leading job and training fair dedicated to careers in ecology, agroforestry and biodiversity conservation. It had a dual purpose : firstly, to allow recruiters and talent to meet and discuss job vacancies and development projects ; secondly, to inform and discuss trends in the job market, training and professional development opportunities.
The day was opened by Professor Baudouin MICHEL, ERAIFT Director. In his speech, he insisted on the importance of « Know-how » in the employability of young people. He added that ERAIFT trains for the job market. Mrs. Françoise Van de Ven, President of the International Technical Association of Tropical Timber (ATIBT), also spoke about the importance of this event, joinly organized by ERAIFT and RADDI, in the employability of young people in forestry.
The day's discussions with the invited professionals were focused on the changings in the job market, managing a professional career, how to present a professional and attractive CV, women and climate change, sustainable business, etc.
Finally, the Director of ERAIFT, while thanking the partners of this first edition of recruitment and training fair, encouraged the young Master's students to improve their business card by carrying out their field placement with diligence and professionalism.
ERAIFT and RADDI are grateful to the European Union, Agrinatura, WWF-DRC, ATIBT, Nature+ and INTERHOLCO for sponsoring this first edition of the "Forest Conservation Job Day". They also thank all the speakers of this day.
Finally, their thanks go to Mr Patrick NGAINCKO, People and Organisation Manager, at INERTHOLCO, for his support in the preparation and organisation of this first recruitment and training fair on forestry and conservation jobs.
Between May 2 and 5, the director of ERAIFT and the fund-raising director travelled to South Africa in order to discuss the future collaboration opportunities with the Southern African Wildlife College (SAWDC). Over the last 50 years, this renowned institution integrated in the Kruger National Park has formed more than 18.000 students coming from 56 countries, and contributed to the reinforcement of capacities in no less than 127 protected areas in Africa and elsewhere in the world. From 2023 onwards, the ERAIFT students in master GAP (Gestion des Aires Protégées – Management of Protected Areas) will have the opportunity to spend the 3rd semester of their education program within SAWDC.
This forthcoming collaboration will contribute to the formation of the future managers of central Africa Protected areas, and strengthen the operational networking between protected areas on the continent. This collaboration will be developed in the framework of the AGRINATURA project funded by the European Union. ERAIFT wishes to express its warmest thanks to both organizations for their support.
From 15 to 20 April 2022, ERAIFT organized a course on "Methods and Tools for Project Management, financial mobilization, Socio-Economic and Qualitative Analysis" in CEBAT under Professor Baudouin MICHEL Coaching.
Forty students from 10 countries (DRC, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Gabon, Madagascar, Mali, Rep. Congo, Senegal and Togo) participated in this training. The objective was to provide learners with the tools to analyze the context and identify operational strategies for the development of a community; and to give them the skills to prepare public and private investment projects.
Learners explored the CEBAT landscape and interacted with different actors active in the ecological Corridor. Four topics were developed, including (1) biodiversity conservation in the Bombo Lumene RCD, (2) water and electricity access, (3) household socio-economic activity, and (4) CEBAT's PT agroforestry approaches, including GI-AGRO, CADIM and ACADEC. This system of learning by doing allowed the students to understand better the relevance of this new natural resource management and rural development paradigm, based on the landscape approach.
CEBAT is a program initiated by ICCN with the support of ERAIFT.
ERAIFT thanks the European Union and AGRINATURA for their support. ERAIFT also thanks ICCN, GI-AGRO, CADIM and ACADEC for their hospitality.
Family photo with the Director of ICCN The learners and the young charcoal burners at Ibi-Village finish their exchange
The 40 students of the 4th class of ERAIFT, during their study stay in the Ibi Village-BomboLumene landscape, were honored on Saturday, April 16, 2022, by a special visit of the General Manager (GM) of the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN), Mr. Olivier MUSHIETE.
The visit aimed to present the "Corridor Ecologique des Batéké" (CEBAT) program and the strategy to preserve biodiversity in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The presentation focused on the following points : (1) the history of the CEBAT concept, (2) the exceptional triple coherence of CEBAT, (3) the CEBAT animation principles and its human impact. CEBAT is an ambitious program of ICCN to network " intelligent villages " that will become seats of intense community and sustainable agroforestry activities.
Following the presentation of the GM, a question and answer session was organized to the great satisfaction of all the learners.
Note that this mission is part of the course of Methods and Tools of project management, raising funds, socio-economic and qualitative analysis, taught by Professor Baudouin MICHEL.
ERAIFT sincerely thanks the GM Mr. Olivier MUSHIETE for this exchange rich in information. It also thanks the European Union and AGRINATURA for their support.
Family photo with the DG ICCN
Campus UNIKIN - BP 15373 - Kinshasa - Commune de Lemba - RD Congo