Forest-Reliant Communities Need Better Tenure Protection - FAO

By Minggu Simon Lhasa BANGKOK, Feb 12 (Bernama) -- Forest-reliant communities in Asia need policies to better protect their tenure and livelihood, and ensure food security, says the United Nations’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). Cambodia, Nepal and Vietnam were three pilot countries working with FAO to move the issues forward, it said in a statement here Thursday. As part of the pilot project, FAO will work with the three countries, building on previous and existing practices, with the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure, and offer training on conflict management and other thematic areas. The initiatives will also focus on current status, trends and challenges regarding forest tenure in Asia, and will promote programmes to enhance the livelihood of forest dependent communities. FAO said a momentum was growing across Asia to better protect the tenure and livelihood of millions of people who relied on access to forest lands, with three countries stepping forward to further secure the rights. It said the economic role of forests, particularly in contributing to the improvement of livelihood and the income of rural communities had received greater attention in recent years. Most countries in Asia and the Pacific were struggling to address forest tenure-related issues, it noted. Inadequate regulatory frameworks and lack of institutional capacity were major obstacles in the forestry sector in Asia when it involved recognising tenure, said FAO. “Recognition of the importance of strengthening community forest tenure, both from policy and institutional capacity perspectives to ensure livelihood, and increase the income of forest dependent people is well-reflected in the development priorities of these pilot countries,” said FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific, Hiroyuki Konuma. His comments reflected the discussions being held Thursday between FAO and the three countries at an inception forum on forest land tenure, convened by FAO and hosted by Nepal’s Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation. “The livelihood of millions of people in this region, particularly rural poor, depend on secure and equitable access to, and control over, these resources. "They are the source of food and shelter; the basis for social, cultural and religious practices, and a central factor in economic growth and sustainable development,” he said. -- BERNAMA