Progress on forest governance in 10 African and Asian nations

The Forest Governance Learning Group has published its latest update report on activities in Cameroon, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, South Africa, Uganda, and Vietnam.

The FGLG aims to connect those marginalised from forest governance to those controlling it, and to help both do things better. It is coordinated by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and has been running since 2003.

The report highlights progress in activities over the past year, impacts to date, the current situation in these ten countries, and the path ahead.

Over the past year the FGLG has produced:

• Ten country teams in place and active in Cameroon, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, South Africa, Uganda, and Vietnam.
• A major learning event on making the law work better for social justice in forestry, involving all the country teams and key international players, in which we recorded lessons learned and identified new tactics.
• Nineteen new policy research outputs and tools.
• Fifteen new press articles and advocacy outputs.
• International outreach activities including cooperation with 14 international organisations and participation in 12 international forums.

The FGLG's impacts include:

• Shaping the partnership agreement between EC and Ghana on legal timber.
• Developing influential small forestry enterprise development strategy in South Africa.
• Re-orienting the debate about charcoal production in Malawi away from ineffective and regressive policing towards sustainable livelihoods.
• High-level debate on destructive logging and Chinese investment in Mozambique.
• Advocacy work which is proving successful in fighting alienation of forest reserve areas to agribusiness in Uganda.

Link to full report [pdf]

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

James Mayers

Head of Natural Resources Group

International Institute for Environment and Development

james.mayers@iied.org

Tel: +44 (0)131 226 7040

NOTES TO EDITORS

The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) is an independent, non-profit research institute. Set up in 1971 and based in London, IIED provides expertise and leadership in researching and achieving sustainable development (see: http://www.iied.org).