Mr R.B. Singh, ADG/RR of the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and
Ms S. Fezzardi of the EC-Delegation delivered the opening addresses. Mr Singh
emphasized the scarcity of reliable information and its importance for decision-making.
Ms Fezzardi expressed her appreciation for the organization of the workshop
and outlined the support of the EC for regional projects.
The preliminary results of the regional study on forest products and trade conducted
by the EC-FAO Partnership Programme were presented and the member countries
reported on forest product statistics in their respective countries (Appendix
2).
Ms Ma had prepared a synthesis of the country studies and elaborated the preliminary
results of the regional overview of forest product statistics. Because the
level of current statistics on forest products in the region varies among
countries, countries were grouped into three categories in the synthesis.
Regular statistics exist only for some of the important products and at an
aggregated level (e.g. roundwood), while data for various product categories
(e.g. fibreboards, sawlogs, other industrial roundwood) remain inadequate and are not
readily available in most countries. Furthermore, statistics on products derived
from plantations and trees outside forests, especially those owned and managed
by the private sector or communities, are not captured in most countries.
This is a particular problem in countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand
and India, where some industries are becoming increasingly dependent on wood
resources from outside government-managed forests. Illegal logging, a major
problem in several countries, causes discrepancies in production and trade
statistics. Additionally, in many countries data flow from the state/provincial
to the national level is slow or non-existent, as forest management is administered
at the state/provincial level and there is no proper mechanism that enables
the flow of relevant information among different levels.
Group discussions were conducted on the draft synthesis and useful comments were
provided by the participants. Both synthesis and national papers will be revised
accordingly and published in a separate document.
In addition to the presentation of country papers, there were five thematic presentations
by invited speakers in the region dealing with:
Mr Somboon Chuchawal from the Pulp and Paper Association of Thailand presented
the private sector’s perspective on the use of information. His presentation
generated considerable interest. In Thailand, pulp and paper production is
based on wood from private plantations. The production from private plantations
is not captured in regular statistics. The association has difficulty in its
decision-making because of the poor information on raw materials.
The session contributed mainly to reviewing current forest product statistics
at national and regional levels, and the identification of the main weaknesses
and constraints concerning forestry statistics.
Mr F. Padovani delivered a series of presentations and training exercises on
the importance of forest product statistics, an introduction to the JFSQ,
problems in data collection and reporting and the dissemination and use of
information. They were integrated with group discussions on problems encountered
in completing and using the JFSQ; suggested improvements for the JFSQ; the
main problems (and their solutions) for forestry information systems in assessing,
disseminating and using wood product statistics as well as hands-on computer
training. The computer training focused on retrieving international forest
product information from FAOSTAT and the worldwide web (WWW), using compact
disks (CDs) and understanding file transfer protocols (FTPs). The participants
also learned how to access the online FAOSTAT working system to complete the
virtual questionnaire.
During working group discussions, problems were identified and possible solutions
for each topic were provided. The session contributed greatly to improving
the collaboration between FAO, ITTO and member countries especially with regard
to data collection using the JFSQ (see Appendix 3).
Mr S. Johnson provided useful insights into international trade statistics. He
introduced the two main international systems for categorizing products: the
Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (HS) and the
Standard International Trade Classification (SITC). He also explained the problems
in the completed questionnaires.
The Royal Forest Department of Thailand (RFD) organized two trips to the RFD
and its Data Center and the Customs Department and one of its ports.
These trips helped to introduce the participants to the RFD’s forestry information
system and the collection and reporting of trade data in Thailand and to gain
more practical knowledge on the actual functioning of the information system.
Overall, the workshop was successful. It accomplished all the objectives and
realized the outcomes. All of the participants delivered good presentations
and joined the training and discussions enthusiastically. The general activities
were very rewarding and stimulated the exchange of knowledge and experiences
among countries, FAO and ITTO. Furthermore, the workshop provided a useful
forum for discussing the problems that statistical correspondents face. The
participants expressed their satisfaction with the progress achieved by the
workshop.
At the end of the workshop, the national statistical correspondents agreed in
principle that they will be responsible for completing and returning the JFSQs
to FAO or ITTO punctually. They will also be responsible for providing FAO
with updated information on forestry activities in their respective countries.
The workshop was instrumental in establishing the network of national statistical
correspondents and in making the network operational (Appendix 4).
The participants from Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and India recommended
that FAO should organize national workshops focusing on creating and enhancing
partnerships in collecting and reporting country data.
The participants also recommended that this kind of workshop should be organized
regularly (e.g. once every two years) to fortify national and international
statistics on forest products.
The FAO team offers its sincere thanks
to the Royal Forestry Department of Thailand for organizing its visits. Furthermore,
the FAO team appreciates the valuable inputs from all of the participants
that contributed to the workshop’s success.
