FO:LACFC/2002/4

INTRODUCTION

1. The Project GCP/RLA/133/EC "Information and Analysis for Sustainable Forest Management: Integrated National and International Efforts in 13 Tropical Countries" is being implemented by FAO in collaboration with member governments and with the financial support of the European Commission. The project objectives and expected outputs were presented at the previous session of the Commission, held in Santa Fe de Bogota, Colombia. During the last two years, the project has completed its first phase and has produced an analysis of the current status and recommendations of forestry related information in the following subject areas: forest resources, socio-economic data, wood fuels, non-wood forest products (NWFP), wood products, trees outside the forest (TOF), land use change, forest management and policy and institutions. The activities were carried out in seventeen countries: thirteen financed through the project and four through FAO regular programme funds. The project outputs have been documented in 22 publications containing 158 reports, which are also available in electronic in the following URL: http://www.rlc.fao.org/proyecto/rla133ec/

PRESENT STATE OF FOREST INFORMATION IN LATIN AMERICA (Phase I)

2. The quality and extent of forestry related information is highly variable in the region. In a few countries forest information systems are explicit and very well structured; while in others they consist of less ordered and inadequately correlated statistics of certain aspects of forestry. Around 80 percent of the countries have publicly available information on primary wood products and forest resources. However, only around 50 percent include reliable information on other topics such as wood fuels, NWFP and land use change. Information on trees outside forests is in most cases not available.

3. Countries expressed the difficulties and high cost involved in generating regularly reliable information. On the other hand, production data obtained from direct surveys carried out by the private sector is more reliable than official reports submitted by producers to national institutions. Therefore, information published by forest industry associations is generally widely accepted, although its availability may sometimes be limited.

4. Regular and reliable information on NWFP production, value and trade is scarce. In some cases, statistics on production and trade exist for important NWFP traded in domestic and international markets. Quantitative information on values of the environmental services of forests is rare.

5. The relatively good level of available forest-related socio-economic information contrasts with the low priority given to quantifying at national level wood fuels for industrial or domestic uses. The low priority for compiling data also applies to the subject of the TOF, which is a relatively new concept.

MAIN CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF PHASE I

6. Countries should continue efforts in standardizing the underlying conceptual methodologies used to collect information on wood products. Dissemination of information should ensure user feedback in order to improve statistics reliability;

7. Increased recognition of the importance of NWFP to local people and national economies from decision makers is necessary. A great amount of methodological work is needed to bring NWFPs into the system of national product statistics including improved definitions and classification as well as appropriate resource assessment methods;

8. Inventories on TOF should become an integral component of national forest inventories to provide the totality of the resources status.

9. Harmonizing forest related definitions is needed in order to facilitate reporting and comparison between country statistics. In addition, social, economic and environmental variables should be included in the inventories in order to enrich the information provided;

10. Information systems related to the quantification, reporting and dissemination on forest areas under different management regimes need to be improved. The information should include annual and total forest areas with management plans duly approved by the national forest authorities.

11. Wood fuels statistics should be included within the national development indicators in order to emphasize their social and economic importance. It is recommended to incorporate fuelwood as an element in forest management plans as well as in agricultural and household consumption surveys.

12. National accounting systems should capture the full value of forest products and services. To facilitate this, the methodologies for forest value assessment need to be improved and capacities in countries enhanced in order to enable decision makers to better appreciate the importance of the forestry sector in the national accounts.

13. Support to institutional capacity building should continue on governance, policy analysis and strategic planning for the forestry sector.

14. In view of the above, it is recognized that countries require further support for improvement of their national forest information systems. At the last regional meeting held in Florianopolis, Brazil in May 2002, FAO was requested to explore funding opportunities needed to finance implementation of the most critical gaps identified in the first project phase.

FORESTRY SECTOR OUTLOOK STUDY FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (Phase II)

15. The forestry outlook study has recently been initiated as the second phase of the current project, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2003. It will provide a perspective up to year 2020 of the possible development of the sector by analysing the trends and emerging economic, social, political, environmental and technological changes that could have an influence on the sector during the next two decades.

16. Based on this analysis, the outlook study will aim to foresee how the sector would possibly evolve in the region. It will serve as a starting point for discussion on alternative futures that can be shaped by appropriate interventions at different levels. Analysing the possible changes in the long term taking into account the larger socio-economic context would significantly enhance the understanding of potential opportunities and constraints in a rapidly globalising world. This would significantly strengthen the ability to foresee changes and orient the implementation of National Forest Programmes.

17. The forestry sector will be analyzed at three different but interdependent levels: national, sub-regional and regional levels.

18. The national outlook is one of the most critical and important first steps in developing the sub-regional and regional forestry outlook reports. The objective is to provide a forward look at the forestry sector fully taking into account the cross-sectorial links. Starting from the present status of forestry, the study will visualise the most likely situation that will develop as regards forests, forestry communities, forest products markets and other specific areas within the next 20 years.

19. At the national level, a focal point nominated by the government will coordinate the preparation of a country outlook paper. The different focal points will have to ensure that public and academic institutions, the private sector and non-governmental organizations involved in forestry have the opportunity to participate in the process.

20. For the preparation of the sub-regional outlook reports, the different countries will be grouped into geographical sub-regions, taking into account economic and ecological linkages. These sub-regions are Central America and Mexico; selected Caribbean countries; the Amazon and the Southern Cone region. The sub-regional analysis will be an intermediate but important level for improving the coordination between countries and would focus on potentials, constraints and options for development of the sector in each of the sub-regions. The sub-regional reports will be supported and complemented with the country reports, the thematic studies and other sources of information under the coordination of sub-regional consultants.

21. The regional report will provide an overview of the status, trends and future prospects for the forestry sector in Latin America and how the sector may position itself in the global context. Specific attention will be given to examine the emerging opportunities for the region in the context of global changing patterns of consumption and trade as also the larger ecological functions of forests.

22. Thematic studies will be implemented at sub-regional and regional levels. They will provide more in-depth understanding of selected issues related to forestry development in Latin America and the Caribbean countries.