About our programme
The Forests and Water Programme, hosted by the FAO Forestry Department, was created in 2003 in response to a new awareness of the complex role that forests play in regulating and filtering freshwater, and to the new internal division of labour advocated by FAO reform.
Although it is a recent creation, our programme builds on FAO’s 25 years of experience in forest hydrology, watershed management, upstream/downstream linkages and sustainable mountain development. These are the four main subjects that Forests and Water focuses on.
The programme aims to support the sustainable management of mountain forests and watershed areas, with special regard to their role in regulating water flows. As well as raising awareness, the programme is involved in field projects to develop, demonstrate and promote appropriate methods and technologies for forest and watershed management. Experiences from these applied projects contribute to the development of practical guidelines and policy support activities.