6 February 2014: The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) has released a working paper, titled ‘REDD+ Politics in the Media,’ which examines how the Tanzanian press reports on and influences the REDD+ dialogue.

The paper notes that the media in Tanzania is generally supportive of REDD+ activities, citing benefits for income generation and reforestation, and avoided deforestation. Caution expressed by the mainstream media, according to the paper, focuses on concerns over the effectiveness of implementation and equitable benefit sharing, as well as land tenure and carbon rights.

The paper, conducted as part of CIFOR’s ongoing Global Comparative Study on REDD+ (GCS-REDD+), identifies main actors in the REDD+ discourse in Tanzania, in particular government agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The paper also evaluates the main topics of discussion, specifically, the link between REDD+ and economic growth, funding for REDD+ and carbon trading, and deforestation, forest conservation and sustainable forest management (SFM).

The paper is based on the analysis of over 400 articles from three major newspapers in Tanzania. CIFOR is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [Publication: REDD+ Politics in the Media: A Case Study from Tanzania]