FO:APFC/2000/6

1. At the time of endorsing the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting in Asia-Pacific in 1998, the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission recognized that major efforts would be required to effectively implement the Code. A complex and varied array of support activities were envisioned by APFC member countries and international and regional organizations. To ensure more coordinated, focused and effective implementation, it was agreed that the APFC ad hoc Working Group on Sustainable Forest Management should develop a comprehensive regional strategy for implementing the Code.

PREPARATION OF THE STRATEGY

2. With substantial financial support from the Government of Australia and the Government of Japan (provided through the Japan Forestry Promotion and Cooperation Center, JIFPRO), a "Regional Strategy for Implementing the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting in Asia-Pacific" was drafted over a period of nearly 20 months.

3. Substantial inputs for the strategy were provided during a meeting of the APFC ad hoc Working Group on Sustainable Forest Management, in September 1998, in Bogor, Indonesia. Early versions of the strategy were distributed to national focal points in APFC member countries for review and comment. The strategy also benefited significantly from input provided during the APFC study tour to Sabah on reduced impact logging for high-level officials in March 1999, and from insights gained during an Australian-supported pilot training-of-trainers workshop in Malaysia in May 1999. Additional input was obtained during the Regional Consultation on Implementation of Codes of Logging Practice and Directions for the Future, held in Vanuatu, in July 1999.

4. The draft strategy was most recently reviewed during a half-day session convened during the Regional Workshop to Develop a Training Strategy in Support of the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting, held in February 2000, in Indonesia.

5. The regional strategy is therefore the result of extensive consultation, review and revision.

KEY ELEMENTS OF THE STRATEGY

6. The regional strategy provides an overall strategic framework to achieve implementation of the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting in Asia-Pacific. It includes objectives, recommended actions, and anticipated outcomes under eight strategies for implementation:

• Encourage appropriate public and political support for implementation of the Code.
• Develop awareness and support for the Code at the regional and national policy-making levels by stakeholders.
• Develop a forest sector that is educated and trained in Code implementation.
• Encourage the development and implementation of national codes based on the regional Code.
• Establish demonstration and training forests.
• Implement effective monitoring and auditing systems.
• Facilitate appropriate research activities and directions in support of Code implementation and sustainable forest management.
• Develop additional tools and guidelines to support Code implementation and sustainable forest management.

7. A timeframe for implementing the recommended actions is included in the strategy. It also identifies target groups that may be able to take responsibility for certain components of the implementation program over a projected 10-year time horizon. Actions are recommended for the Commission, national forestry agencies, NGOs, private forestry companies, research organizations, and international donor organizations.

8. To achieve implementation of the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting in Asia-Pacific, actions will be required at the regional, national and local levels. The Regional Strategy for Implementing the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting in Asia-Pacific focuses mainly on actions at the regional and national levels. Finer detail at the local level would be expected to follow once the appropriate national frameworks and directions are set.

COMMISSION CONSIDERATIONS

9. The Commission is invited to comment on the process by which the Regional Strategy for Implementing the Code of Practice for Forest Harvesting in Asia-Pacific has been drafted and its content. If deemed appropriate, the Commission may wish to endorse the strategy as a guide for future support in implementing the regional Code.

10. Particular attention may be directed to possible identification of financial and human resources needed for implementing the recommended strategies and the appropriateness of continued implementation within the framework of APFC.