TITLE:
Residents’ Perceptions of the Importance of Urban and Peri-Urban Forests in Goma
AUTHORS:
Esdras Kasongo Shabani, Jean-Baptiste Ndamiyehe Ncutirakiza, Mumbere Mbasa Ndemo, Tchamba Martin
KEYWORDS:
Urban Forests, Ecosystem Services, Residents’ Perceptions, Urban-Peri-Urban Gradient, Goma
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Forestry,
Vol.16 No.3,
July
21,
2026
ABSTRACT: Rapid urbanization in sub-Saharan Africa is reshaping human-environment interactions, particularly in rapidly growing cities such as Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. In this context, urban and peri-urban forests play important socio-economic, environmental, and cultural roles. However, evidence on how residents perceive and interact with urban forests across urban and peri-urban settings remains limited in Central Africa. This study examines how residents perceive, use, and assess the importance of ecosystem services provided by urban and peri-urban forests in Goma. A structured household survey was conducted between 23 and 29 March 2026 among 869 households almost equally distributed between urban and peri-urban neighborhoods. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square tests. Results show that provisioning services were the most recognized and valued ecosystem services in both contexts, particularly food supply and medicinal uses. Construction wood and fuelwood were more frequently emphasized in peri-urban areas, while urban residents more strongly recognized environmental services such as air quality improvement and shade provision. Urban and peri-urban forests were also associated with recreational, spiritual, and social functions, with relaxation representing the main motivation for visiting wooded spaces. Significant spatial differences were observed regarding perceptions of forest importance and attachment to urban forests. Urban residents perceived stronger impacts associated with forest loss and expressed greater willingness to financially support urban forest conservation, despite lower vegetation availability. Satisfaction levels were highest for services related to living environment quality and neighborhood attractiveness, whereas stress reduction emerged as the least satisfactory ecosystem service in both contexts. These findings highlight the multifunctional importance of urban forests in Goma and emphasize the need for inclusive and context-specific urban forestry strategies integrating livelihood needs, environmental quality, and social well-being.