In 2011, the European Forest Institute Central-East European Regional Office (EFICEEC) conducted a study for FAO to improve knowledge on the origins, evolution and current situation of forest owners’ associations and cooperatives in selected Eastern European countries, assess their effectiveness, and analyse lessons learned from experience of legislation, policies, strategies, institutional support and economic aspects (FAO, 2012). This follow-up study on successful FOOs of different types is based on the results and conclusions of the FAO 2012 study. It covers forest owners’ associations (FOAs), with the main aim of representing their members’ interests in the political arena; and forest owners’ cooperatives (FOCs), with the main aim of facilitating business cooperation. This study aims not only to facilitate the healthy and sustainable development of FOOs in Eastern European countries, but also to contribute to a larger best practices document for forest producer organizations in developing countries around the world. The objective of this report is to identify success cases and good practices from FOOs in Eastern European countries, based on a set of criteria, and to analyse common factors for success.

Type of Case
Printed publication (book, sourcebook, journal article…)

Publisher
FAO

Region
Europe

Biome
Temperate

Forest Type
All forest types (natural and planted)

Primary Designated Function
All