Loru Forest Project, Vanuatu – The Nakau Programme // GO BACK

The Loru Forest Project, managed by the Nakau Programme, protects 166 ha of tropical rainforest on eastern Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu.
The project combines coastal rainforest protection with agroforestry, with a special focus on producing the agricultural commodity Melanesian Chestnut (Canarium indium) for participating community members.
Actively Contributes to

Actively Contributes To
- The project protects over 293 ha of tropical rainforest on eastern Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu which provides habitat for the critically endangered Vanuatu Megapode bird (Megapodu freycinet layardi), and the critically endangered Coconut Crab (Birgus latro). It is also home to several endemic birds including the Vanuatu Kingfisher (Halycon farquhari), the Vanuatu Flycatcher (Neolalage banksiana), the Vanuatu Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus tannensis), the Vanuatu White-eye (Sosterops flavifrons), the Santo Mountain Starling (Aplonis santovestris), the Vanuatu Imperial Pigeon (Ducula bakeri), and the Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis).
- The rainforest also provides valuable protection from cyclones, floods and droughts for the Loru local people.

Actively Contributes To
- The project is owned by the Serkar Clan of indigenous ni-Vanuatu landowners of Loru, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu. The clan consists of five extended families of some 50 individuals descended from Chief Serkar (1913-1997). The landowners have given up rights to clear land for coconut plantations in exchange for the opportunity to sustainably manage local land to generate revenue for local economic development.
- This project also provides governance and management support and capacity building for community enterprise at Loru. This is to help the Loru landowners manage the rainforest conservation project and develop spin-off community businesses - the first of which is a community business producing and selling agroforestry produce (e.g. Canarium nuts) from adjacent lands that they own and manage.
This ex-post project will generate 2,442 Plan Vivo Certificate per year, with registration and first issuance due in Q2, 2016. The project works with about fifty indigenous ni-Vanuatu landowners of the Serkar Clan, descended from Chief Serkar (1913 - 1997). In order to protect the rainforest, these landowners have given up the rights to land clearance for coconut plantations.
The project site provides habitat for the critically endangered Vanuatu Megapode bird (Megapodu freycinet layardi) and the critically endangered Coconut Crab (Birgus latro). It is also home to several endemic bird species including the Vanuatu Kingfisher (Halycon farquhari), the Vanuatu Flycatcher (Neolalage banksiana), the Vanuatu Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus tannensis), the Vanuatu White-eye (Sosterops flavifrons), the Santo Mountain Starling (Aplonis santovestris), the Vanuatu Imperial Pigeon (Ducula bakeri), and the Golden Whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis).
The project aims to support its participants by providing governance and management support, as well as transferring skills, knowledge through capacity-building for setting up community enterprises at Loru. This will provide a long-term incentive and sustainability driver for the Loru landowners to manage the rainforest conservation project by developing community businesses based on agroforestry produce.
ABOUT THE PROJECT |
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Location:
Loru, Espirtu Santo, Vanuatu |
Operational Since:
2014 |
Project Coordinator:
Ekos, Live and Learn |
PVCS Issued to date:
4,884 |
Area of land under management:
166 ha |
Participants:
1 community group with approx. 50 individuals |
Project interventions:
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Milestones:
Registered in 2016 |
Website: |
Audit
Reports
Additional
Documents
Dec 2015 | The Nakau Programme is officially launched at the Global Landscapes Forum, as part of COP21 in Paris.
Aug 2015 | The Loru Forest Project is validated and verified by Dr. Noim Uddin