Mekong Regional Land Forum 2021, Session 2 intro

1. Safia Aggarwal
Forestry Officer
FAO Forestry
Safia.Aggarwal@fao.org
http://www.fao.org/forestry/
Global and regional forest tenure
trends: Opportunities and
continuing challenges for
communities and smallholders
3rd Mekong Regional Land Forum
26-27 May 2021

2. The extent of community based forestry globally
• FAO definition: “all initiatives that increase the role of local people in
governing and managing forest resources”
• Today, nearly 1/3 of forests are owned or managed by communities
and smallholders worldwide

3. Trends in recognition of community &
smallholder forestry
Early approaches (1980s) Today
Legal strength Community forests were
recognized in policies
In laws or national
Constitutions
Duration Not specified or short Specified in laws and longer
Forest quality Allocated degraded forests Allocation also of good quality,
intact forests
Resource use Subsistence use of non-
timber forest resources
Increasingly commercial use
of timber and non-timber forest
resources
Rights vs
responsibilities
Few rights, mainly
responsibilities
More balanced (greater rights,
greater responsibilities)
Based on FAO recent analysis: 40 years of CBF and 23 country analyses

4. Livelihood outcomes
Stronger legal provisions have:
o Increased subsistence
benefits (20 of 23 countries)
o But few income benefits (10
of 23 countries)
Outcomes
Impact on forests
• Forest cover – Limited data, but evidence
of increase in forest cover, reduced
degradation (7 of 23 countries)
• Improved forest governance – Majority of
cases (14 of 23 countries) show reduced:
o Illegal logging
o Unsustainable fuelwood extraction
o Unsustainable charcoal production
o Wildlife poaching
o Agricultural encroachments
o Land grabbing
o Fires

5. • Rights recognized – But they are not
formalized (13 of 23 countries), and
laws are not implemented (3 of 23
countries)
• Protections – Are not adequate in
laws (19 of 23 countries) and States
are not always respecting rights (8 of
23 countries)
• Regulatory frameworks –Are
creating obstacles (22 of 23 countries)
and rarely facilitate benefits (19 of 23
countries). This is unlike the situation
for timber companies or of farmers in
the agriculture sector
Why have income benefits been so limited?

6. Regional Trends:
Asia and the Pacific
• Rapid expansion of smallholder
forestry: In China, 108.9 million ha
(60%) of forest land transferred with
commercial harvesting rights. Similar
approach in Vietnam.
• Recognition of rights of indigenous
peoples & local communities: The
Philippines, Indonesia & India collectively recognize over 86 million
ha of community forests, although most are not formalized. In
Australia, 41.9 million ha (34%) of forests & Melanesia 88-97% are
now under collective indigenous regimes.
• Increase in collaborative forestry regimes: Particularly in
Southeast Asia, but increase is modest (31 to 34% between 2002-
2012).
Main trends in forest tenure reform since the 1970s

7. Strengths
• Supportive policy and legal frameworks for
customary and collective tenure
Limitations
• Legal frameworks relatively nascent, & incomplete
• Weak institutional frameworks & implementation
• Conflicts with other sectoral policies
Trends in the Mekong Region
(except China)
• Lack of clarity on how to grant & implement these rights
• Poor enabling environments for civil society engagement in CF
policy reform processes
• Allocation of largely degraded forests
• Commercial access restricted, or complex regulations for forest
based enterprises

8. But, six keys are needed to unlock the potential, but ALL hinge on
strong tenure rights
Scaling up of community forestry can contribute significantly to: i)
improving forests, ii) reversing climate change, iii) strengthening local
livelihoods, iv) meeting domestic timber and non-timber needs, and v)
delivering on many of the SDGs
In Conclusion:
Community based forestry continues to be a hidden potential

9. Resources
• FAO. 2019. Assessing
governance of tenure framework
• FAO 2019. A framework to
assess extent and effectiveness
of Community based forestry
• FAO.1994. Tree and land tenure:
rapid appraisal tools
• http://www.fao.org/forestry