Meet Dr. René Siwe Ngamabou!
The U.S. Forest Service Central Africa Program, supported by the U.S. Department of State, is excited to welcome René as our new Climate Fellow based in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo. For the next few years, René will be embedded in Congo’s Ministry of Forest Economy to help evaluate and strengthen the country’s Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) measurement, reporting and verification system. René will work as an advisor to government officials and support government technicians working on the design and implementation of the National Forest Monitoring System.
René comes to us with more than 10 years of experience in the fields of sustainable development, natural resources management, climate change, land use management, remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Most recently, he has been working for the German Development Bank (KfW) and the government of Cameroon as a Climate Change and REDD+ expert, helping to elaborate the REDD+ National Strategy and Forest Investment Plan.
The U.S. Forest Service Central Africa Program, supported by the U.S. Department of State, is excited to welcome René as our new Climate Fellow based in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo. For the next few years, René will be embedded in Congo’s Ministry of Forest Economy to help evaluate and strengthen the country’s Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) measurement, reporting and verification system. René will work as an advisor to government officials and support government technicians working on the design and implementation of the National Forest Monitoring System.
[From right] Dr. René Siwe Ngamabou and U.S. Forest Service International Programs Central Africa Program Coordinator Richard Paton meet with colleagues during the Forest Governance Forum held in Brazzaville in October, 2018. Photo courtesy of Exaucé Yoka, U.S. Forest Service International Programs.
The Republic of the Congo has been committed to the REDD+ process since 2008 and the U.S. Forest Service supports government capacity building in the form of technical assistance, workshops, and training. From 2013-2014, René worked with the U.S. Forest Service on the elaboration of the Project Implementation Plan for the third national greenhouse gas communication for the Republic of the Congo. René’s experience and first-hand knowledge of the country will be an asset as the Congo moves forward in the REDD+ process.
“I hope to support the Republic of the Congo in strengthening its monitoring and reporting capacity of REDD+,” says René, “hence improving the overall communication of greenhouse gas emissions from the land use, land use change and the forestry sector to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).”
Welcome René, we are excited to have you on board!
