FAO expresses sincere appreciation and gratitude to all who contributed to the Asia-Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study (APFSOS). In doing so, FAO recognises that contributions have been far wider than the list provided here. Hundreds of unidentified contributors provided information, advice and opinions during the preparation of working papers and the final study report. Grateful thanks are rendered to all these people and agencies.
The strong support given by member countries toward the completion of the APFSOS is reflected by the nearly universal preparation of country outlook studies by member countries of the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission. Many countries also provided comprehensive reports and recent documentation on national policies, strategies and actions. Governments in the region nominated national focal points who met early in the process to discuss their roles and to agree upon a common national report structure. The national focal points were instrumental in collecting country-level data and information, clarifying issues and verifying statistics.
Valuable support for the APFSOS was also provided by partner agencies within and outside the region. These include the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA); Canadian Forest Service; Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR); Forestry Research Support Programme for Asia and Pacific (FORSPA); International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO); Regional Wood Energy Development Programme for Asia and the Pacific (RWEDP); USDA Forest Service (International Programs and Northwest Forest Experiment Station); Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forests of Japan (through Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA)) which seconded an expert to the FAO Regional Office in Bangkok; and Ministry of Forestry of the People's Republic of China and Ministry of Forestry, New Zealand, both of which released officers for FAO assignments.
The Study was initiated at the Sixteenth Session of the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission, which was chaired by Dr. Kyaw Tint (Ministry of Forestry, Myanmar); and reviewed at the Seventeenth Session chaired by Dr. Toga Silitonga (Ministry of Forestry, Indonesia).
Implementation of the study was co-ordinated by Mafa Chipeta and Patrick Durst, and assisted by Desk Officers Chris Brown, Hidehiko Ishihara and Zheng Rui, under the supervision of Hosny El-Lakany, Soetatwo Hadiwigeno, David Harcharik, A.Z.M. Obaidullah Khan, Prem Nath, Lennart Ljungman, Marc Rene de Montalembert and Michael Martin. Implementation was overseen by an FAO Steering Group comprised of Nikos Alexandratos, Jacques Antoine, Jim Ball, Jim Bourke, Mafa Chipeta, Jean Clement, Yves Dube, Klaus Janz, Lennart Ljungman, Michael Martin, Marc Rene de Montalembert, Saravannamuttu Muttiah, Richard Owen, Paul Reichert, Olman Serrano and Miguel Trossero.
National reports were submitted by government forestry agencies from nearly all countries in the region. Additional thematic working papers were contributed by: Mohammed Ahmed; Romulo Arancon (Asian and Pacific Coconut Community); Joerg Balsiger; Ajit Bannerjee; Jean Louis Blanchez; David Brooks, Mafa Chipeta and Adrian Whiteman; Chris Brown; Neil Byron (CIFOR); Dali Zhang, Joseph Buongiorno and Shushuai Zhu (University of Wisconsin); Anthony DiNicola, Don Justin Jones and Gerald Gray (American Forests and COPEC); Lamjavyn Djortseden (Ministry of Nature and Environment, Mongolia); Thomas Enters (FORSPA); Hong-Narith (Department of Forestry and Wildlife, Cambodia); Robert Fisher, Somjai Srimongkontip and Cor Veer (RECOFTC); P.M. Ganapathy; Don Hammond; Kampheuane Kingsada; Guido Kuchelmeister (Tree City); Thierry Lefevre, Jessie Todoc and Govinda R. Timilsina (Asian Institute of Technology); Kreg Lindberg, Brian Furze, Marilyn Staff and Rosemary Black; Michael Lyons and Lu Wenming; Ma Qiang; Andrew Mittelman, Chun Lai, Neil Byron, Genevieve Michon and Esther Katz; Mok Sian Tuan; Saravannamuttu Muttiah; Aung Kyaw Myint and Thomas Hofer (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development); James Paine (World Conservation and Monitoring Centre); Tara Bhattarai, Conrado Heruela, Willem Hulscher, Auke Koopmans, Jaap Koppejan, Joost Siteur and Arjan Kraijo (Regional Wood Energy Development Programme for Asia and the Pacific); David Seabright; Shi Kunshan, Li Zhiyong, Lin Fenming and Zheng Rui (Ministry of Forestry, People's Republic of China); K.M. Siddiqui (Pakistan Forest Institute); Nguyen Tuong Van (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Viet Nam); Napoleon Vergara; Thomas Waggener and Christine Lane; Douglas Williams (International Tropical Timber Organization); Byoung Il Yoo (Forestry Research Institute, Republic of Korea); Zhu Zhaohua, Jiang Chunqian, Zhong Maogong and Wang Huafu (Chinese Academy of Forestry); and Mohamed Zuhair.
The following individuals served as National Focal Points or participants in the National Focal Points' meetings: David Alien (New Zealand); Lamjavyn Djortseden (Mongolia); Saw Eh Dah (Myanmar); Allan Hansard and Peter Thomas (Australia); Shaharuddin Ismail (Malaysia); Jeon Jin-Pyo (Republic of Korea); Sa-nguan Kakhong and Sirada Phongsoeksawat (Thailand); Indra Singh Karki (Nepal); Jose Malvas (Philippines); Adriu Nabora (Fiji); Hong Narith and Uk Soknonn (Cambodia); M.P.A.U. Sarath Fernando (Sri Lanka); Shi Kunshan (People's Republic of China); Shingo Shibata and Takashi Sekiguchi (Japan); K.M. Siddiqui (Pakistan); Toga Silitonga and D. Mulyadhi (Indonesia); Rajiv Srivastava (India); Nguyen Tuong Van (Viet Nam); Bounthong Xaisida (Laos); and Mohamed Zuhair (Maldives).
The core drafting team for the main report was comprised of: Tara Bhattarai, Darcie Booth, Jim Bourke, Susan Braatz, David Brooks, Chris Brown, Neil Byron, Cherukat Chandrasekharan, Mafa Chipeta, Patrick Durst, Thosapala Hewage, Miguel Trossero and Adrian Whiteman.
Other contributions to the main report were made by: Jim Ball, Jean-Louis Blanchez, Gary Bull, Anthony DiNicola, Patrick Dugan, Hidehiko Ishihara, Dougal Morrison, CTS Nair and Salleh Mohd Nor.
An Expert Advisory Group (EAG) composed of eminent experts on Asia-Pacific forestry, met twice to review drafts of the report - once in Kathmandu (hosted by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)), and once in Kuala Lumpur (hosted by TROPBIO Sdn Bhd). The EAG was comprised of: Masahiro Amano, Tara Bhattarai, Patrick Dugan, Barin Ganguli, Larry Hamilton, Thosapala Hewage, Salleh Mohd Nor, Narayan Kaji Shresta and Napoleon Vergara.
Thanks are due to the entire Forestry Department, FAO, Rome and Forestry Staff of the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, all of whom contributed to the study.
Finally, special thanks go to those who worked long and late to provide essential secretarial support: Linda Ransom (FAO, Rome), Amy Tanachiva and Helene Gunatilaka (FAO, Bangkok) and to Iraê Sassi for preparation of the final manuscript for printing.
