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Africa's Ecological Footprint

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Africa's Ecological Footprint Africa’s Ecological Footprint: Human Well-Being and Biological Capital Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Global Footprint Network FACTBOOK November 10, 2006 Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation www.sdc.admin.ch The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) is Switzerland’s international cooperation agency within the Swiss Foreign Ministry. Together with other federal offices, the SDC is responsible for overall coordina- tion of development activities and cooperation with Eastern Europe, as well as humanitarian aid.The SDC carries out its activities in Switzerland and abroad, with an annual budget of CHF 1.3 billion (2005). The agency under- takes direct actions, supports the programmes of multilateral organisations, and helps to finance programmes run by Swiss and international aid organisations. Global Footprint Network www.footprintnetwork.org The Global Footprint Network is committed to fostering a world where all people have the opportunity to live satis- fying lives within the means of Earth’s ecological capacity. We are dedicated to advancing the scientific rigor and practical application of the Ecological Footprint, a tool that quantifies human demand on nature, and nature’s ca- pacity to meet these demands. Contact Information: Global Footprint Network 1050 Warfield Avenue Oakland,CA 94610 USA Tel. +1-510-839-8879 (Time Zone -8 GMT) Fax +1-510-251-2410 Please address all enquiries to: Martin Kärcher ([email protected]) or Audrey Peller ([email protected]) To access a PDF version of this document and questionnaire, please visit: http://www.footprintnetwork.org/Africa Table of Contents Figures and Tables Figure 4.1 Ecological Footprint per person, by country, 2002 6 1. Purpose of This Factbook 3 Figure 4.2 Humanity’s Ecological Footprint, 2002 6 2. Africa and Ecological Limits 4 Figure 4.3 Ecological Footprint by Region, 2002 6 Figure 4.4 Global Distribution of Ecological Footprint Intensity, 2001 7 3. Measuring Human Development 5 Figure 4.5 Living on Less, Living on More, 2001 8 4. Ecological Footprint 6 Figure 4.6 Ecological Debtor and Creditor Countries, 2001 9 Figure 5.1 Human Development Index and Ecological Footprint of Nations 11 5. Ecological Limits and Development 10 Figure 6.1 HDI of Africa by Component 12 Figure 6.2 Ecological Footprint in Africa 13 6. Human Development and Biocapacity 12 in Africa Table 7.1 Biocapacity export of selected African countries 14 Figure 8.1 Five Factors of Biological Supply and Demand 16 7. Trading Biological Capacity 14 Figure 8.2 FIve Factors of Biological Supply and Demand, 18 including Net Exports 8. Managing Ecological Assets to 15 The following tables and figures repeat for all countries in the Fact Page Section of this document, beginning on page 22: Secure Human Well-Being: Five Factors at Play Table 9.1 Countries included in this study 9. Fact Pages for Selected Countries: 19 Figure 9.1.1 HDI Components, Indexed Figure 9.1.2 Income Distribution Africa 20 Mozambique 52 Table 9.1.1 HDI Components, Absolutes Algeria 22 Niger 54 Table 9.1.2 Gender Related Development Benin 24 Nigeria 56 Table 9.1.3 Public Health Brazil 26 Rwanda 58 Figure 9.2.1 Human Development and Ecological Footprint of Nations Burkina Faso 28 Senegal 60 Table 9.2.1 Trade and Debt Burundi 30 South Africa 62 China 32 Switzerland 64 Table 9.2.2 Population GDP and Ecological Footprint Egypt 34 Tanzania 66 Figure 9.3.1 Population Trend Ethiopia 36 Uganda 68 Figure 9.3.2 Footprint and Biocapacity Trend France 38 United Kingdom 70 Figure 9.3.3 Ecological Footprint by Component, 1961-2002 Germany 40 United States of America 72 Figure 9.3.4 Biocapacity by Component, 1961-2002 Ghana 42 Zambia 74 India 44 World 76 Appendices Kenya 46 Appendix 1: Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Table 80 Madagascar 48 Appendix 2. Technical Notes 82 Mali 50 Appendix 3. Glossary of UNDP Terms 89 Appendix 4. Literature and Reference 90 Global Footprint Network : Africa 2006 -- the Ecological Footprint : Factbook 2 Global Footprint Network: Africa’s Ecological Footprint - 2006 Factbook 1. Purpose of this Factbook capital—to play an increasingly dominant role in economic, social, and policy planning everywhere—not only in Africa. Yet Africa This factbook on human well-being and ecological assets in Africa hosts many countries that are already facing ecological bottle- is the result of a joint project between the Swiss Agency for Devel- necks. This makes, we believe, the debates suggested by this opment and Cooperation (SDC) and Global Footprint Network. It is factbook particularly pertinent for Africa. At this stage the available a collection of key indicators on human development and ecologi- data allows discussion on a national level. However, the debate cal performance derived from UN statistics. What is new is the at- must continue at a more local scale, especially as one takes into tempt to show a link between human development and ecological account growth in urbanization that some African countries are performance. experiencing. The purpose of the factbook is to open a conversation with you, This factbook builds on a simple tenet: Effective management the reader, and get your frank input. As a partner of SDC, Global strategy for biological capital requires accounting tools that track Footprint Network, or an active organization in your region, you availability and use of this capital. Ecological Footprint accounting, have been selected to participate in this collaborative effort. We presented here, is one tool for exactly this purpose. This factbook value your expertise in African development, and we ask for your shows forty-year time trends of ecological assets for twenty-five honest reactions and critical assessment of the presented informa- countries. The feedback from the attached questionnaire will in- tion: Is this information valid? Does it capture the reality in your form four stakeholder workshops in Africa, which in turn will pro- country? Does the discussion framework make sense to you? vide key input into the final report on “Ecological Assets and Hu- man Well-Being” to be released and distributed internationally. Your uninhibited and open feedback will be crucial for the project. Our goal is twofold: We invite your organization to participate in this process by re- • Provide more consistent and accessible information on eco- sponding to the attached questionnaire, and possibly by partici- logical limits and sustainability; and pating in one of the four workshops to be held in the later part of • Make this information relevant to existing debates on devel- 2006. Considering the overuse of resources and accumulation of opment and long-term human prosperity in the region. waste in the rest of the world, Africa is and will increasingly face serious human development and environmental challenges. By This factbook provides a starting point for this discussion for the bringing the experience and analysis of your organization into an many people involved. It offers data to compare various countries’ international arena, and informing local and regional work with a development, as well as their supply and demand of biological global- and country-specific perspective on biological capacity, we capital – the ultimate resource upon which all human well-being are hopeful that together we can create tools to help development depends. professionals face the 21st century challenges more effectively. Africa’s significant natural wealth in some areas, and ecological Martin Sommer, Head of Environment Division scarcity in others, suggest that a debate informed by ecological Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation realities could lead to more successful human development strat- egies. If overuse of ecological resources continues, we expect Mathis Wackernagel, Executive Director biological capital—not just human, human-made and financial Global Footprint Network Global Footprint Network : Africa 2006 -- the Ecological Footprint : Factbook 2. Africa and Ecological Limits Humanity is living beyond the planet’s ecological means. Although 28 percent lower than the world-average of 1.8 global hectares per the global economy and population continue to grow, our planet person. remains the same size. Despite repeated calls for “sustainable de- velopment,” humanity has now entered into a state of global over- Limited access to biocapacity can affect a society’s well-being. shoot with demand for resources exceeding the Earth’s regenera- Residents of countries with severe biocapacity constraints are tive capacity by more than twenty percent. The global biosphere often among the countries with the largest human development now takes nearly one year and three months to regenerate what challenges. There are a number of historical reasons for which humanity uses each year (see Section 4). countries got into this situation. This is the essence of overshoot: demand on nature exceeds sup- The assessment presented in this factbook documents where the ply, resulting in over harvesting of resources and accumulation of countries chosen for this report are today, not the mechanisms wastes. It inevitably leads to the degradation of the natural assets that led them to their situation. In other words, we offer a descrip- that society depends on. What are the consequences for human tion of the current state, not an analysis of the causes. well-being of using up resources faster than nature can renew them? Many of the challenges and opportunities facing the African con- tinent are linked to biological
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