Twenty-sixth session of the International Tropical Timber Council
Delegates from 36 International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) members, three observer countries and about 20 observer organizations participated in the twenty-sixth session of the International Tropical Timber Council and related committee meetings. The meetings were convened from 28 May to 3 June 1999 in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Main topics on the agenda included:
· revision of ITTO project-related guidelines and manuals;· application of ITTO's revised criteria and indicators for sustainable management of natural tropical forests;
· annual market review (including the downturn in the international tropical timber market);
· promotion of market access opportunities for international trade in tropical timber;
· review of ongoing projects;
· consideration, approval and funding of new project proposals;
· options for the frequency and duration of council and committee sessions;
· procedures for selecting the next Executive Director.
After discussion of a number of proposed revisions in an informal working group, the Council approved the ITTO manual for project formulation, the revised ITTO manual for project monitoring, review and evaluation and the Manual on rules and procedures for project implementation.
Delegates reviewed and adopted the Manual for the application of criteria and indicators for sustainable management of natural tropical forests. The council recognized the complexity and difficulty of applying the revised criteria and indicators, particularly in developing countries with limited capacity; the need for testing of the manual and for extensive training in its application; and the desirability of ITTO collaboration on other regional and international initiatives regarding criteria and indicators.
Presenters and panelists stimulated the discussion of a wide range of issues related to markets for tropical timber. Included among the presentations were reports on impediments to market access for tropical timber and the downturn in the international tropical timber market; these reports will be further refined and considered again at the next council session. Several delegates suggested that ITTO should conduct more studies on long-term trends in timber markets. Some delegates, the ITTO secretariat and the reporting officer highlighted opportunities for ITTO to work together with FAO and the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) on such studies, including the ongoing Forestry Outlook Study for Africa. Many delegates expressed concern that the market share of polyvinylchloride (PVC), aluminium, steel and other substitutes has increased at the expense of tropical timber.
Partly in response to the annual market review, the council adopted a decision that calls on ITTO to undertake efforts to increase understanding of the contribution of tropical timber trade to sustainable forest management. Subjects to be investigated include progress towards sustainable forest management in producer countries, the causes of tropical deforestation and the role of trade. The decision also calls on ITTO to undertake a study on the assessment of the sustainability of forests, including a review of existing auditing systems and/or protocols for demonstrating sustainable forest management.
The council approved 22 proposals for new projects, including 15 in the area of reforestation and forest management, two in the area of economic information and market intelligence, and five in the area of forest industry. A number of previously approved but unfunded projects received funding pledges from members. The trend is clearly towards smaller but more numerous projects in ITTO.
The ITTO selection panel considered a total of 209 applications for ITTO fellowships and recommended 24 applications for approval, including 11 from Asia and the Pacific.
The council agreed to continue the current practice of convening six-day sessions twice a year, but agreed to review options again at the next session.
With regard to procedures for selecting the next Executive Director of ITTO, to replace B.C.Y. Freezailah, who stepped down from the position in March, a screening panel would prepare a short list of six candidates from among those proposed by member countries for consideration by the council.
IUFRO World Congress in August 2000 in Malaysia
Under the theme "Forests and society: the role of research", the Government of Malaysia will host the twenty-first World Congress of the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations (IUFRO) in Kuala Lumpur, from 7 to 12 August 2000. IUFRO's congresses, held every five years, provide an opportunity for forest scientists to present their results to other researchers, forest managers, users of forests and forest products, policy-makers and the public. Further, the congresses offer opportunities for scientists to join the large number of international networks of researchers working on specific topics and to share their experience, materials and results. Some 2 000 to 3 000 participants are expected to participate in the twenty-first IUFRO World Congress in Kuala Lumpur.
The scientific programme of the congress will include special plenary sessions organized by the Congress Scientific Committee (CSC), each day starting with a keynote address given by a renowned personality; scientific subplenary sessions based on invited papers, organized by IUFRO divisions and task forces; and group sessions, organized by IUFRO divisions, research groups and task forces, which will be designed around a small number of synthesis papers, panel discussions, poster sessions or a combination of these. Each session will draw conclusions that will be reflected in the final plenary and in the congress recommendations.
Further information on the IUFRO World Congress may be obtained at: http://iufro.boku.ac.at/iufro/congress/ or http://nt1.frim.gov.my/iufro/iufromp.html.
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Themes of the XXI IUFRO World Congress Sustainable management of natural resources · Water and forests Forests and society's needs · Wood products utilization Changes in environment and society · Environmental changes and forests Cultural diversity in forest management · Agroforestry The global vision of forest and society · Interaction between forest science and forest policy |
