The Nyungwe National Park is one of the oldest rainforests in Africa and the largest protected area in Rwanda. Nyungwe was declared a national forest reserve in 1933, but human pressure caused a major reduction of its size starting in the 1960s. It was finally established as National Park with the highest level of protection in 2004. Albeit at slower rates, the forest has continued to be cleared and most of all degraded despite conservation efforts. Recent studies on forest cover change have shown that 0.27% of the forest cover disappeared between 1986 and 2015. Against this background, the Livelihoods Carbon Fund 3 impact investment fund is considering investing in a meaningful project to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) from the Nyungwe National Park. Unique was commissioned to perform an initial scoping study.

• Perform a carbon scoping study to assess the potential for a REDD+ project
• Consultations with responsible Project Developer and Government officials
• Assessment of baseline and project scenario and quantification of the carbon case
• Verification of drivers of forest loss and a preliminary forest inventory
• Supporting livelihoods in preparation of project documentation for the investment decision