**3.3 Temporal variations of forest cover loss**

The patterns of forest loss were computed based on Hansen's [4] forest cover change dataset. Temporal changes in forest loss areas were calculated from 2000 to 2019 also based on Hansen's [4] forest cover change data. **Figure 6** shows the

**Figure 4.** *Forest cover in 2000.*

*Remote Sensing Based Quantification of Forest Cover Change in Somalia for the Period… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.99365*

#### **Figure 5.**

*Forest cover loss between 2000 and 2019. The red spots show areas of forest loss throughout the study period.*

**Figure 6.** *Annual trends of forest area loss from 2000 to 2019.*

yearly trend of forest cover loss in Somalia throughout the study period. There is generally upward trend of forest loss with the peak occurring in the year 2013 when 4116.76 ha of forest cover were lost. The least forest cover loss happened in the year 2006 when 336.72 ha of forest was lost.

#### **4. Discussions**

In this study, the year 2000 was used as the baseline, and during that year, most of the forest in Somalia was in the southern parts with only small patches of forests in the northern parts of the country (**Figure 4**). This pattern of forest cover may be explained by the significant variations in climatic conditions between the northern and southern parts of the country. Relatively high temperatures are experienced throughout the year in the northern parts of the country compared to the southern parts that have relatively lower temperatures. The southern parts also receive moderate amounts of rainfall on occasional basis and these have been shown to support vegetation growth [38], thus the higher forest cover relative to the north.

Forest cover loss was unevenly distributed throughout the country as shown in **Figure 5**. It is evident that most of the forest loss occurred to the southern parts of the country, mainly around Mogadishu and Kismayo, probably due to the higher forest cover there. Besides, it is in these parts of the country where charcoal production and use is very high. Research on household sources of energy in Somalia has established that the main source of energy for Mogadishu is charcoal [11]. In 2011, the United Nations Monitoring Group for Somalia and Eritrea reported that charcoal was also an important source of income for Al Shabaab [39]. The proliferation of this armed militia group in the country has been a source of insecurity and underdevelopment from 2008 to date. Their growth and expansion may be partly attributed to the incomes generated from the illegal sale of charcoal produced in the southern parts of Somalia. Besides Al Shabaab being forced out of the country's capital in 2011, they continued to control vast southern and central parts of Somalia including the port of Kismayo. Most of illegal charcoal export by Al Shabaab from Somalia has been through this port [40, 41]. These among other unexplored reasons explain the high levels of forest destruction in the southern and central parts of Somalia throughout the study period. Some of these reasons may include inappropriate land use and extraction of other natural resources besides the forests. These practices have been so rampant in Somalia that forest cover loss in this country has also significantly contributed to forest cover loss across the African continent. It has been shown that Somalia is responsible for 6% of all trees lost in the continent with an estimated annual forest cover loss of 76,757 hectares [6].

Results from this study show a general upward increasing trend of forest cover loss throughout the study period (**Figure 6**). The peak of forest cover loss was in 2013 when over 41,00 ha of forest area was lost. This can be attributed to the high charcoal production (approximately 24, 000 metric tons of charcoal produced between 2011 and 2013 in southern parts of Somalia) and sale that was experienced during this period in Somalia [42]. During this time, the charcoal industry was dominated by the Al Shabaab militant group which controlled the region at the time, and had no regard for environmental conservation. Their main goal was to raise money to finance their terrorist activities, and charcoal production and sale was a one of their major sources of income.

Apart from charcoal production, the high losses in forest cover can also be attributed to the high rates of population increase in the Somalia (**Figure 2**). Population increased exponentially throughout the study period, with a total percentage increase of 75% between the year 2000 and 2019. Increase in population exerts more pressure on economic land resources consequently resulting in their degradation and eventual destruction. The gradual increase in population in Somalia over the study period exerted considerable pressure on the forest resources which are major land economic resources in the country. More trees were cut down to provide energy for cooking as firewood or charcoal, and also for construction timber among other forest products. Another thing that may explain the high forest cover losses in Somalia is the low annual precipitation the country received over the study period. Although the annual rainfall had a generally increasing trend between 2000 and 2019, the average annual rainfall for the entire period remained low at approximately 21 mm. Low rainfall slows down regeneration of degraded forests and may lead to drying out of the young seedlings planted to replace the cut down trees.

*Remote Sensing Based Quantification of Forest Cover Change in Somalia for the Period… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.99365*
