African Green Footprints

The project location in North Kivu Province of the DR Congo is an area that historically has always been the most important center of economic activities.  The Province is made up of North and South Kivu and borders the Ituri province to the North, Tshopopo Province to the northwest and Maniema to the southwest.  North Kivu occupies an area of 59,834 km² and a population of 4,564,434.  The Province consists of three main commercial and population centers of Goma, Butembo, and Beni.  North Kivu is the gateway to the second largest tropical rainforest in the world and home to the Virunga National Park, a World Heritage Site that is home to the endangered Mountain Gorillas. 

Beni is the nearest town and administrative center to the plantation and is only 80 km to the border of Uganda and approximately 100 km to Rwanda.   Historically coffee production and mineral extraction have been the main commercial activities.  The town of Beni is the beginning of a transportation network in Central Africa that connects Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, and Tanzania.   

The equator divides North Kivu and creates a tropical to sub tropical equatorial climate that provides an annual rainfall of approximately 1,700 mm.  The climate dynamics are sufficient for cultivating commercial hard wood plantations.  The high levels of humidity, sandy loamy clay soils, and warm climate creates a situation where an annual tree growth in excess of three meters makes the region around Beni an ideal location for carbon sequestration plantations.  The Plantation Mangina is located approximately 30 km from Beni at an elevation between 1000 – 1750 meters above sea level.

Plantation Mangina was founded in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1956 in the Province of North Kivu by the Late Germaine and Léon Duvignaud. The principal activities of the Plantation were the large scale commercial development of papaïne (a latex extract of the papaya fruit) and Robusta Coffee beans for export.  The papaïne latex was used for the pharmaceutical industry and the coffee beans were processed to produce both parched and Grade A washed decorticated coffee for the export market.  The founders’ daughter, Feza Regine Kangabe is the current principal owner of Plantation Mangina. 

The Plantation is more than 50 years old and still owned and managed by second and third generation entrepreneur members of the Duvignaud family.  The Plantation was the first estate to be established in the village of Mangina and has provided employment to hundreds of staff over the years.  This historic significance means that Plantation Mangina occupies a special place in the community and remains an iconic local monument because of this early model of development.   We will once again be pioneering the transformation of the agro forestry industry around the municipality of Mangina as the Duvignaud family did so long ago - by investing in large scale commercial plantations and industrial activities.   

Our current activities on Plantation Mangina involve afforestation of 200 ha with a commercial forest to function as a carbon sink and later to harvest the wood for sale at the end of the carbon sequestration period.  Eucalyptus Globulus or Blue Gum trees were selected to plant on the plantation for 3 main reasons:

• There is no danger this tree species will harm the silviculture balance of the location.
• The Blue Gum is one of the fastest growing carbon sinks available.
• The wood can be harvested in a way to maximize income while keeping the sequestered carbon intact.

There is great potential for many types of high value added agricultural and forestry activity on Plantation Mangina.  The presence of year round flowing streams allows for various profitable activities from food production to fish ponds.  The streams are located through out the plantation and allow for an equal distribution of water across the whole Plantation.  With an annual rainfall of 1,700 mm there is an abundant source of water the whole year.   

Plantation Mangina offers several unique advantages that will ensure an endless source of high return income generating activities that can be brought on line and simultaneously supported. 

The more important advantages include:

1. An infrastructure officially valued at $ 522,000 which includes more than 25,174 meters of industrial space with existing facilities that with minor renovation can support many different activities such as offices, storage, medical clinic, repair and support activities, drying operations, light and heavy industry assembly and auto repair and storage.
2. This intact infrastructure will require a minimal initial investment compared to the cost of developing a “Greenfield” investment. 
3. A centrally located area that is easily accessible throughout the year and close to the economic center of Mangina Town.
4. Arable land where high yielding agricultural products are the norm. 
5. Most of the coffee and other plants have been removed so a minimal clearing and replanting investment is required. 
6. A 200 ha parcel of fertile agricultural land is available for farming and industrial activities.  The wholly owned parcel will allow us to react to changing market and investment conditions in a timely manner at a low cost. 
7. The availability of large labor pool with large tracts of underutilized farmland and plantations across North Kivu means that mechanized agriculture and other industrial activities can be developed at a significantly lower startup operating cost.

Various types of agricultural activities are available on both intensive small or large acreage with high yielding, high export potential crops and animal husbandry of all types including chickens, goats, cattle, pigs and fish ponds. 

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