admin | May 20, 2026
News Brief
Women in Guinea’s Kérouané region are restoring degraded forests by collecting seeds from native trees for reforestation efforts led by the arboRise Foundation. Across more than 40 villages, women gather seeds from local species used for food, medicine, and soil restoration, helping forests regenerate naturally. Participants receive income for their work, supporting families during difficult seasons and funding small investments such as livestock and farming activities. Communities report improving soil fertility and water retention as restored forests begin transforming both landscapes and livelihoods.
In Guinea’s forested Kérouané region, women are playing a central role in restoring degraded landscapes while transforming their own livelihoods. Through the collection of native tree seeds, they are helping bring back forests that had been lost to farming, logging, and charcoal production.
In the village of Kofilakoro, Mariame Condé remembers a difficult time. Pregnant and struggling to feed her family in 2022, she says the forest work came at just the right moment. She adds, “My husband had left to search for work, and we had almost no food left. The money I received helped me buy food and take care of my child.”
Mrs. Condé collected 20,000 Carapa procera tree seeds from around her home in 2022. He was paid about $115 US for this effort as part of a project by arboRise Foundation. Since then, Mrs. Condé has continued collecting seeds from local tree species, earning an income that helps her family during the most difficult months of the year, when food stocks run low and the next harvest is still far away.
Across more than 40 villages, women walk the hills and fields collecting seeds from a wide variety of native trees, including species valued for food, medicine, and soil restoration. The seeds are later scattered directly onto degraded land, allowing forests to regenerate naturally without nurseries or expensive equipment.
Anne Dray, a senior researcher involved in the initiative, says: “It’s a very simple method. But it allows large areas to be restored at low cost, while engaging local communities directly.”
The work is coordinated with local partners and landowning families, who provide land and help protect the restored areas from fire and grazing animals. Women, however, are at the heart of the system, from seed collection to monitoring the recovery of the trees.
For many participants, the income has been life-changing. Women receive monthly payments that are significantly higher than the national minimum wage, helping them cover food shortages, school needs, and small household investments.
Mrs. Condé explains that she was able to buy livestock and gradually build a small herd. She says, “Before, we depended on uncertain harvests. Now I have something stable that helps my family.”
Beyond income, communities are also seeing environmental changes. Streams that once dried up are now flowing longer into the year, and soil fertility is slowly improving as trees return to the landscape.
Local women also take on new responsibilities after the initial seed-collecting phase. They monitor tree growth, check for fire damage, and support replanting where needed, giving them a stronger voice in how the restored land is managed.
In some villages, women have also formed cooperatives to expand into small-scale farming activities such as growing peppers, okra, and groundnuts, further diversifying their income.
Community members say the approach has strengthened cooperation between families, with decisions made collectively about how land is used and how benefits are shared.
For women like Mrs. Condé, the impact goes beyond environmental restoration. It is about stability, dignity, and a more secure future.
She says, “When I see the trees growing again, I know things can change. Not just for the land, but for us too.”
This story is based on an article written by Liz Kimbrough and published on MongaBay, titled “Women scatter seeds, restore forests in Guinea, the ‘water tower of West Africa’” To read the full story, go to: https://news.mongabay.com/2025/12/women-sow-seeds-restore-forests-in-guinea-the-water-tower-of-west-africa/
Photo: Instruction how to estimate the tree height with a graduated pole when one can’t read in one of the communities in Guinea. Image courtesy of GUIDRE.