Forest Restoration in North Macedonia and Albania
As part of The Swedish Postcode Lottery Foundation's Northern Forests Initiative, a new forest restoration project aims to contribute to the restoration and preservation of vital forests in Albania and North Macedonia and strengthen the capacity and commitment of local, regional, and national actors for sustainable forest management.
According to Global Forest Watch, North Macedonia lost 5,5% and Albania 6,5% of total tree cover in the last 20 years while recent local analysis confirmed this trend by showing concerning losses of 6.78% and 4.88% of non-degraded forests over the last 12 years. Similar negative trends are recognisable in high biodiversity value regions like core habitats of , Critically Endangered (CR) according to the , and other endemic species. Some of the direct and indirect degradation drivers include poor management of key biodiversity landscapes in protected areas that did not sufficiently prevent forest losses. Moreover, illegal logging has been a long-lasting problem in the Balkans, coupled with rapid urbanisation, land use changes and climate change consequences.
The implementation of , such as Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) on around 40 hectares of degraded forest land in 鈥淏ukovikj鈥 in North Macedonia and 鈥淧ashtrik-Morina鈥 in Albania will largely contribute to biodiversity and connectivity, including in surrounding protected areas. These FLR interventions will have multiple benefits such as carbon sequestration and ecosystem resilience, while halting biodiversity loss by improving habitat conditions for the Balkan Lynx and other threatened endemic species. The project also aims to raise national capacities and commitments to future restoration efforts and sustainable management of forests by involving relevant stakeholders and decision-makers.
By promoting sustainable forest management and forest landscape restoration in Albania and North Macedonia, the project will initiate restoration work in key biodiversity landscapes to enable multiple long-term ecological and societal benefits. It will strengthen local, regional and national actors' capacity and commitment in terms of forest management and restoration via training, workshops and advocacy work. Furthermore, the aim is to increase the exchange and bilateral dialogue towards raising commitments to FLR and sound management of forests in both countries.
This initiative will enhance the restoration and sustainable management of terrestrial ecosystems, significantly boosting sustainable forest management efforts in Albania and North Macedonia. By strengthening capacities and commitments, the project aims to foster better forest management practices while simultaneously reducing degradation, while leading to more effective conservation and sustainable use of forest resources.
The project started in January 2023 and will end in July 2025.听听fully supports it听with 6, 900, 000 SEK.听
It is implemented in close cooperation with our members and local partners: , Republic of North Macedonia, and听, Republic of Albania.听
