November 2004

1. Title of the Work Plan

Trends in forest ownership, forest resources tenure and institutional arrangements: Are they contributing to better forest management and poverty reduction?

2. Main objectives of the Work Plan

Most forest areas in Asia are under the formal jurisdiction of governments and forest management has officially been a state matter – through public sector forest agencies – for more than a century in virtually all countries. Excessive deforestation and forest degradation resulting from population growth, agricultural expansion, escalating demand for wood products, illegal logging, industrial development and rapid economic growth have triggered a debate not only on the effectiveness of public sector forest management but also on changes in forest ownerships, forest resource tenure and institutional arrangements. Over the last 20 years, the commitment to empowering local communities, to decentralizing decision making to local government units and to increasing private sector involvement in forest management has been growing. This development is paralleled by significant shifts in forest tenure and innovative institutional arrangements that have considerably increased the direct involvement of stakeholders in forest management.

Understanding the impact of tenure issues and recent trends is essential for governments to promote sustainable use and to formulate effective policies. With current trends in privatization and community involvement in forest management, we are witnessing rapid changes in ownership and resource tenure patterns and increasing complexity of stakeholder relations. These changes have social, political and economic implications, which need to be monitored and assessed. Initial work in collecting global information on forest ownership has been carried out by Forest Trends and others, but to date most review of forest ownership (public and private) have been limited and of a general nature. The proposed work to be carried out under this work plan would build on the earlier efforts by more fully describing the current situation and expanding to include resource tenure and institutional arrangements. This will serve to deepen understanding of the issues and help provide further guidance to countries.

FAO is currently collecting more detailed data on the extent of forests according to different types of ownership and different levels of control and access to resources as part of the Forest Resources Assessment 2005 (FRA 2005). Twenty countries in Asia are being requested to complete a matrix in support of this effort.

The activity proposed in this work plan would seek active collaboration of AFP partners in the efforts to extend and strengthen the review of forest ownership through in-depth case studies in selected countries. The aim would be to expand and strengthen the quantitative analysis, and to complement it with detailed qualitative information, especially on resource tenure and institutional arrangements. The results of the study will support policy and law development of countries in the region. They will also help raise awareness of the importance of forest ownership, clear tenure and effective institutional management arrangements as key aspects of sustainable forest management.

3. Expected results

Through the assessment of forest ownership, forest resource tenure and forest management arrangements the following results are envisioned:

• better understanding of how rights and responsibilities are linked to ownership, use and management of forest resources in Asia;

• identification of trends in establishing various institutional arrangements and management agreements and their contribution to sustainable forest management, to local livelihoods and to poverty reduction;

• identification of possible linkages/influence of forest ownership and forest management systems on forest law compliance and on monitoring and evaluation of forest use.

• improved policy/law development and implementation, which addresses the roles of forests in contributing to poverty reduction;

• detailed data on forest ownership and tenure arrangements in the selected case study countries; and

• a contribution to the overview of ownership and tenure arrangements in the region.

4. Modalities/Procedures

• Development of outline and guidance for case studies (December 2004).

• 6 - 8 national case studies from Asia conducted on: a) forest resource ownership and tenure and b) institutional arrangements and management agreements (completion: June 2005).

• Regional workshops to analyze and discuss the findings of case studies, in particular topics related to forest resource tenure and the trends in establishing various institutional arrangements along the shifts toward devolution and privatization (late 2005).

• FAO offers to coordinate the proposed work in close collaboration with interested AFP partners

5. Time frame

1 year starting from early 2005

6. Arrangements for potential funding

FAO will contribute to the effort, but seeks additional support from other interested partners (e.g. contributions from interested donors, international organizations and civil society; in-kind contributions from AFP member countries interested to conduct the case studies).

Various possible sources, including ODA and non-governmental financing.

7. Partners involved [potential partners in Italic]

Governments: UK (DFID), Japan, European Union
Philippines (has indicated interest in contributing in-kind for a case study in the country)
Intergovernmental Organizations: CIFOR
Civil Society: TNC, WRI, IGES

Note:

For further information please contact:

Patrick Durst
Senior Forestry Officer for Asia and the Pacific
FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
39 Phra Atit Road
Bangkok 10200, Thailand
Tel: 66-2-697-4139
Fax: 66-2-697-4445
Email: patrick.durst@fao.org
 

Top | Back to Activities