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Freshwater swamp forest use in the Niger Delta: perception and insights

ABSTRACT Forest ecosystems are increasingly seen as vital resources and elements for the sustenance of households across the African continent. However, the dynamics surrounding the forest use and consequent degradation are poorly understood across the different forest ecosystems in the Niger Delta region and Africa as a whole. These relationships still remain a challenge to the management and sustainable use of the Freshwater swamp forest in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. This study presents an examination of the determinants and socioecological processes of forest use from 243 household surveys within 12 communities across the Niger Delta region. The results showed that the communities derived a major part of their sustenance from the forests and used the forests mainly for provisioning services. Since the households and communities varied in their socioeconomic statuses, levels of remoteness, availability of alternative sources of livelihood, they were found to vary at the landscape level in their degrees of dependence on the forests and consequently, their patterns of degradation.