The Expert Consultation on Forestry Education, organized from 17 to 19 October 2001, in Rabat (Morocco), in collaboration between FAO and the Ministry of Rural Development and Waters and Forests of Morocco, gathered thirty experts, resource persons and observers. Participants discussed new profiles of foresters to better address the changing needs in the forestry sector and the evolving demands of society on forests. They made recommendations to FAO and to member countries concerning the strengthening of forestry education and training institutions, the approaches to and implementation of curricula revisions and mechanisms and arrangements to facilitate these processes. The Consultation noted that, while forest science and technology remain the backbone of forestry education and training programmes, forestry education institutions alone cannot provide training in all the areas of expertise which are needed in sustainable management of forests nowadays. Other institutions also have a role to play. Foresters need to acquire the ability to work in multidisciplinary teams and to develop capacities for lifetime or continuing learning in order to adapt to the evolving conditions in which sustainable forest management will be implemented. The Consultation stressed that forestry education is an integral part of national forest programmes.
Since its inception, FAO has played an active role in forestry education and training. In 1956 a permanent group of experts in this field was established as a statutory body of the Organization, which from 1964 to 1999 was replaced by the FAO Advisory Committee on Forestry Education (ACFE). This Committee played an important role in the creation and strengthening of forestry education and training institutions in developing countries, and in fostering international cooperation in this field. FAO has assisted in this mission at all levels in more than 50 countries around the world, mainly between 1965 and 1980.
The content of forestry education and training programmes was a long-standing concern of ACFE. The Committee drew attention to the need for special efforts in curricula revision to keep them updated and conform to major changes in the forestry sector, which have been accelerating in the past decade. Forest and tree resource management is characterized by more emphasis on environmental functions and biological diversity and a better recognition of needs and rights of people living inside and around forests. The forestry sector is also affected by global trends such as privatization, decentralization, devolution and globalization.
The Consultation provided very useful guidance for shaping the activities of FAO and member countries towards improving forestry education programmes and equipping foresters with the knowledge, abilities and attitudes, necessary to ensure sustainable management of the world's forests for present and future generations.
I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Organizing Committee, in particular the École Nationale Forestière d'Ingénieurs (ENFI) for the excellent arrangements and facilities provided and to all the participants for their commitment and hard work. The Consultation thus resulted to be a successful and productive exercise.
El-Hadji Sène
Director
Forest Resources Division
Forestry Department
