ITTO THEMATIC PROGRAMME ON

REDUCING DEFORESTATION AND FOREST DEGRADATION AND
ENHANCING ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES IN TROPICAL FORESTS(REDDES)PROGRAMME DOCUMENT

3 April 2009

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
I.

II.

PLANNING ELEMENTS

3

1. RATIONALE AND PROBLEM ANALYSIS

3

2. OBJECTIVES

7

3. PROGRAMME STRATEGY

7

4. OUTCOMES/OUTPUTS/DELIVERABLES AND EXPECTED IMPACTS/BENEFITS

11

5. OTHER PARTNERS AND STAKEHOLDERS

14

6. ACTIVITIES

15

7. WORK PLAN, INCLUDING BUDGET ESTIMATES AND DONOR CONTRIBUTIONS

17

OPERATIONAL ELEMENTS

19

ANNEX 1. PROBLEM TREE ANALYSIS OF THE REDDES THEMATIC PROGRAMME

21

ANNEX 2. THEMATIC PROGRAMME APPRAISAL PROCESS

22

2

I.

PLANNING ELEMENTS

1.

RATIONALE AND PROBLEM ANALYSIS

Rationale
Deforestation and forest degradation in tropical forests have reduced the quality of environmental services
derived from them. The rate of loss of forest area is estimated at 12.9 million ha per year 1 leading tosignificant loss of habitats for biodiversity and emissions representing 18% of the global anthropogenic CO 2
emissions 2 . The area of degraded forests is estimated at 850 million ha and the loss of environmental
services from these areas may be even larger than losses resulting from deforestation 3 . Tropical forests areof enormous importance for the conservation of biodiversity as they contain more species than any otherbiome and many of the tropical species are threatened. To the extent that the undesirable conversion offorests to other land uses can be avoided and degraded forests can be restored and rehabilitated there areboth local as well as global benefits. While environmental services are being lost or degraded, tropical timber
producing countries also miss opportunities for maintaining and enhancing sustainable livelihoods including
sources for income and employment generation.
The ecosystem services of tropical forests include mitigation of climate-change impacts, conservation of
biodiversity, protection of watersheds that supply forest-dwelling and urban communities with high-quality
water, provision of amenity and recreation services, and production of biomass as an alternative source ofenergy for fossil fuels. These and other services, including disaster prevention such as flood control andprotection against land slides and tsunamis, and the maintenance of the overall resilience of ecosystems
may be achieved simultaneously through sustainable forest management (SFM), protection against
deforestation, and restoration and rehabilitation of degraded forests.
According to a recent IUFRO scientific assessment 4 , climate change, together with human induced impacts,
may have significant (negative) effects on the regulating, cultural and life supporting services of tropicalforests. Adjustment is needed in response to actual or expected negative effects on forests to increase theirresilience and to reduce their sensitivity and vulnerability to fires, insect pests and diseases, which calls foradaptive management within the SFM framework. In order to maintain the various ecosystem services offorests adaptation in forest management will be necessary. This is a major new challenge as adaptation
measures also increase costs of SFM and require new policy instruments and increased multi-sectoral
coordination.
Over the last decade, interest has grown in regulatory, market-based and other schemes of payment forenvironmental services (PES) derived from forests. In most developed countries a lot of attention is directed
to environmental services for conservation of watersheds and biodiversity, but their greatest opportunity for
PES is in climate-change mitigation through increasing or protecting carbon stocks in tropical countries which
has not yet been sufficiently considered. With a few exceptions in Latin America (mainly Costa Rica, Mexico,and some Andean countries), non-climate-related PES mechanisms play in practice a limited role in national
economic activities. As a whole, the actual development of market-based PES mechanisms in developing
countries has been slow and may remain limited at least in the short-term. Payment schemes largely rely on
domestic public sector funding and international support, but in the long run market-based solutions can play
an increasing role towards sustained financing of sustainable forest management (SFM), maintenance andenhancement of forest environmental services in “with a view to promoting the adequacy and predictability offunding. 5
Problem Analysis
The core problem to be addressed by the REDDES Programme is the inadequate capacity of ITTO
producing member countries and their stakeholders to maintain and enhance environmental services oftropical forests by preventing and reducing deforestation and degradation.

1

FAO. 2006. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005. FAO Forestry paper 147. Rome.

2

Stern, N. 2006. Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change. HM Treasury Cabinet Office. London

3

ITTO. 2002. Guidelines for the Restoration, Management and Rehabilitation of Degraded and Secondary Tropical Forests. ITTO
Policy Development Series No. 13. Yokohama

4

IUFRO. 2009. Adaptation of Forests and People to Climate Change – Global Assessment Report. Tampere.
(in press)

5

ITTA, 2006 Art 1(g)3Deforestation is often primarily a consequence of factors outside the forest sector such as population growth,
poverty, increasing need for land for food production, biofuels and other goods and various non-forest uses
but it is also influenced by the expansion of commercial timber harvesting to new areas (which subsequently
opens them up to encroachment). Degradation is driven in part by commercial harvesting, but other factors
include fuelwood gathering, overgrazing, unsustainable shifting cultivation of agricultural crops anduncontrolled forest fires. Degradation is also the consequence of non-anthropogenic factors such as storms,
natural fires, flooding, etc. In order to address the underlying and direct drivers of deforestation anddegradation building up country capacity is critical.
Country situations vary but a number of common underlying causes can be identified which lead to reduced
quality and quantity of forest environmental services. Persistent poverty among forest-dependentcommunities in many forest areas, coupled with lack of alternative sources of livelihoods, leads to excessive
utilization of forest resources causing gradual degradation and eventually to deforestation. Lack ofawareness on policy failures and governance weaknesses have led to inappropriate legislation, perverse
economic incentives, incoherent policies and institutional inefficiencies which can drive deforestation andforest degradation. Lack of investment in SFM and restoration and rehabilitation is due to insecure land andforest tenure as well as inadequate financing mechanisms. In particular, the forest environmental services
produced are not compensated to forest communities, owners and managers who maintain them... In orderto bring degraded forests under SFM often requires revision of regulation as their management may
differ from that in primary production forests.
In many tropical countries, there is inadequate knowledge on forest resources to allow informed decision
making at all levels. In particular, there is a lack of, or insufficient monitoring of forest resources to allow fortimely corrective action. These factors explain inadequate capacity to make informed decisions on
management and protection of forest resources and therefore rehabilitation investments and other corrective
action often become costly and difficult to implement. In addition to lack of financing, restoration of degradedprimary forests and rehabilitation of degraded forest lands are further hampered by shortages of trained
human resources and appropriate technology. All these intertwined factors represent constraints for country
capacity to make progress in reducing deforestation and forest degradation, implementing SFM andenhancing environmental services.
The effects of deforestation and forest degradation include reduced supply of forest products and services,increased CO 2 emissions, loss of biodiversity and reduction of habitat quality, reduced water quality andsupply, increased soil erosion, increased vulnerability to climate change and disasters as well as loss of
economic development opportunities for local populations and indigenous peoples living in and around forest
areas. These effects aggravate poverty, deteriorate livelihoods and lead to displacement of people andmigration as well as social conflicts and further marginalization of indigenous peoples and other groups
depending on forests for their livelihoods. In addition, forest degradation leads to unsustainable economic
development due to excessive exploitation of forests.
Due to the complex cross-cutting nature of the problem (see Annex 1 for an indicative problem tree), a
programmatic approach with cutting edge actions is provided by the REDDES Thematic Programme.
Relevant International and Regional Work
The international level initiatives related to the REDDES Programme are mainly targeted at building up
capacity of selected countries for assessing, monitoring and verification of carbon offsets from avoided
deforestation and establishing biodiversity and other PES schemes for local communities. In particular,
several international initiatives have been recently launched within the framework of Reduced Emissions
from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) as a response to the Bali Action Plan of the thirteenth
Conferences of Parties of the UNFCCC, in order to scale up reduction of deforestation (the first “D”) andforest degradation (addressing the second “D”). They include:(a)

UN-REDD Programme: FAO, UNDP, and UNEP have started a joint UN-REDD Programme indeveloping countries, building on agency-specific comparative strengths. The actions will serve thedouble purpose of developing the necessary capacity to implement REDD strategies as well as
provide practical experience and lessons learned which can inform the international dialogue on a
post-2012 REDD mechanism. The UN-REDD Programme attempts to facilitate partnerships andcontribute to coordination and mainstreaming of in-country efforts. The programme has twocomponents: (i) assisting developing countries to prepare and implement national REDD strategies
and mechanisms and (ii) supporting the development of normative solutions and standardized
approaches based on sound science for a REDD instrument linked with the UNFCCC. Countries
participating in the first phase of the programme including five ITTO member countries (Bolivia, the4Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Panama, Papua New Guinea) 6 . ITTO has already provided
input to UN-REDD preparatory missions to some of these countries.
(b)

The World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF): The FCPF Readiness Fund will build
specific capacity in participating countries to implement the REDD scheme. This will include, inter alia:(i) assessing historical emissions from deforestation and degradation; (ii) projecting emissions fromdeforestation and degradation into the future, using a national reference scenario; (iii) preparing anational REDD strategy, with proposals for policy and regulatory changes and specific actions toachieve the planned emission reductions in the form of development programmes or the like, as well
as design of mechanisms for distribution of benefits; and (iv) establishing a monitoring system foremissions. Thirty-seven countries have been selected for the first phase of the Readiness Fund andsome of them referred to ITTO supported projects in their Readiness Plan Idea Note (R-PIN) submitted
to the FCPF, demonstrating synergies between the two organizations.
As part of its climate
investment funds, the World Bank is in the process of setting up a Forest Investment Programme
which would provide support to investments needed to deliver climate benefits from REDD and to
implement SFM, providing a potentially close linkage with the REDDES Programme.

(c)

As part of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership (CBFP), the Congo Basin Forest Fund (CBFF) was
launched in June 2008 to complement existing initiatives. The purpose is (i) to support transformativeand innovative proposals that will develop the capacity of the people and institutions of the Congo
Basin to enable them to manage their forests, (ii) to help local communities find livelihoods that areconsistent with the conservation of forests, and (iii) to reduce the rate of deforestation. The Fund will
provide a source of accessible funding and encourage governments, civil society, NGOs, and theprivate sector to work together.

(d)In addition, there are a number of national or bilateral initiatives which are targeted at enhancing
tropical forest conservation and environmental services from tropical forests. They include, inter alia,
Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative, the Amazon Fund in Brazil (supported by
Norway), and Australia’s International Forest Carbon Initiative (IFCI) specifically benefiting Indonesia
and Papua New Guinea.

There are also several externally funded projects, programmes and voluntary payment schemes on reduced
emissions, watershed protection and biodiversity conservation services in tropical forests. With few
exceptions, they tend to be location-specific initiatives having accumulated valuable knowledge and there isan opportunity for scaling up and sharing of experiences among stakeholders of the ITTO developing
member countries.
Value Added of the REDDES Programme
The main value added of the REDDES Programme derives from its complementarity with other international
initiatives, particularly those related to REDD as it can address many of the thematic or geographic gaps notpresently covered. In addition, the Programme offers a possibility to integrate, in a consistent and systematicmanner, all environmental services (including carbon and non-carbon environmental services) within theSFM framework for management of tropical forests focusing on capacity building for implementation. This isa major challenge as carbon and other environmental services are not yet effectively integrated into
sustainable forest management in the tropics which has traditionally focused on timber and, to a lesser
extent, on non-timber forest products.
Thematically, the REDDES Programme has a strategic focus on reducing deforestation and degradation
through sustainable management of primary forests, and restoration and rehabilitation of secondary forestsand degraded areas with a view of enhancing all the environmental services provided by tropical forests. The
Programme is therefore broader than e.g. most international REDD-related initiatives. Furthermore, it isrecognized that many REDD-related programmes are focusing on avoided deforestation. While reduced
deforestation is also covered by the ITTO REDDES Programme, its emphasis on reducing forest degradation
provides significant value added. The Programme is complementary to the UN-REDD in which forest
degradation is also covered in national support activities, which calls for enhancing synergies between thetwo initiatives.
With regard to FCPF, its Readiness Fund will build up the capacity to implement the REDD scheme while the
FCPF Carbon Fund will support a few countries that have successfully participated in the Readiness
Mechanism to pay for performance-based emission reductions once evidence has been provided that these6

www.un.redd.net

5

reductions have been realized. The REDDES Thematic Programme is complementary to FCPF as itsupports countries and operators in their efforts to realize emission reductions through implementation ofSFM.
As regards capacity building, many REDD programmes focus on measurement, assessment, reporting andverification (MARV) of emissions from deforestation and elaboration of national REDD plans, oftenemphasizing national and sub-national level implementation. While the ITTO REDDES Programme can alsooffer support to these activities (particularly in member countries which do not yet have access to otherprogrammes), its strategy is broader covering building up capacity at forest management unit and local levels
for implementing SFM. The Programme also covers restoration and rehabilitation of degraded forests forenhancement of all environmental services from tropical forests. In capacity building the REDDESProgramme therefore complements other. REDD initiatives by focusing on how emission reductions are
realized in practice by cutting edge interventions while the other initiatives tend to focus on estimation,measurement and verification of emission reductions. This represents a strong element of additionality andcomplementarity of the REDDES Programme.
ITTO has a long track record of working with member countries and partners to help put policies into
practice, promoting various REDDES-related activities through field projects and capacity-building initiatives.
More than 300 projects/pre-projects have been implemented to support sustainable management of tropicalforests in producing member countries. ITTO has a particular comparative advantage to address forest
degradation, for which unsustainable harvesting of timber, fuelwood and other forest products is a major
driver. This track record offers a sound basis for integration of environmental services in practice within theSFM framework of tropical forests.
The implementation of the ITTO Guidelines for the Restoration, Management and Rehabilitation of Degraded
and Secondary Forests (2002) offers an important strategy for ITTO’s producer members in combating
deforestation and degradation and for enhancing the environmental services of the tropical forests. The
recently updated ITTO/IUCN Guidelines for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity in Tropical
Timber Production Forests represents an additional specific tool to help secure valuable environmental
services. Close cooperation between ITTO and IUCN in developing manuals for restoring forest landscapesand in training stakeholders has proved to be highly useful and can be continued through a programmatic
approach under REDDES. The recent ex-post evaluation of five ITTO projects in the field of rehabilitationand management of degraded and secondary forests 7 has shown that valuable lessons have already been
gained through ITTO-funded projects and that there is an opportunity to scale up the Organization’s activities
in this area.
Several ITTO member countries (e.g., Bolivia, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Ghana, Malaysia, Mexico, etc.)
have developed or are developing payment schemes from environmental services related to theconservation of biodiversity, carbon offsetting, disaster prevention and watershed management. Drawing onthese experiences, the Programme can assist other ITTO member countries in using valuation tools forassessing the economic benefits of environmental services, constructing sustainable and viable PES
schemes, and attracting potential investors to finance operational PES schemes. With high levels of interest
already being expressed from ITTO member countries in this subject area 8 , ITTO’s comparative advantage
is in capacity building, demonstration and scaling up through dissemination of information on technicalaspects and lessons learned on PES schemes under the REDDES Programme.
Geographically, the REDDES Programme can assist all ITTO developing member countries; including thosedeveloping countries which currently do not have access to the on-going international REDD-related
initiatives.
Due to the fundamental importance of good governance for the maintenance and enhancement of forest
environmental services, governance and law compliance is also a common theme with the ITTO TFLET
Thematic Programme focusing on strengthening of forest governance and reduction of illegal logging andtrade. There are strong synergies and therefore the relevant activities of the two programmes will be closely
coordinated to maximize their effectiveness. Without adequate forest governance it will be impossible toimplement REDDES and other international initiatives related to reduced deforestation and forest
degradation (REDD).

7
8

Malleux, J. et al. 2008. Summary Report of the Ex Post Evaluation of 5 Projects in the Field of Rehabilitation and Management ofDegraded and Secondary Forests. ITTO CRF(XLII)/6
52 responses from the three producing regions have been received by March 2009 to the call for proposals to develop
environmental services from tropical forests.

6

The REDDES Programme also complements the Thematic Programmes on Trade and Market
Transparency, Community Forestry and Enterprises, and Industry Development and Efficiency by building up
critical capacity in SFM and prevention of deforestation and forest degradation thereby providing enabling
conditions for poverty reduction through broader development of sustainable forest management, further
processing, and trade from legally harvested and sustainably managed sources.
The REDDES Programme contributes to the implementation of the CPF Strategic Framework for Forests
and Climate Change 9 in those areas of assistance which are relevant to ITTO’s work; i.e. (i) incorporate
adaptation and mitigation in national forest programmes and other development strategies; (ii) build capacity
for SFM and forest-based climate change mitigation and adaptation; (iii) enhance the biophysical adaptationof forests to climate change while safeguarding the livelihoods of forest-dependent communities and small
forest owners and protecting forest biodiversity and other essential forest services; (iv) reduce and eventuallyeliminate unsustainable forest activities; (v) enhance capacity to design, monitor, verify and report on climatechange mitigation and adaptation efforts; and (vi) explore ways of securing international and national
financing and private-sector investment.

2.

OBJECTIVES

The general objective of the Thematic Programme is to reduce deforestation and forest degradation,enhance environmental services and help improve forest dependant livelihoods through sustainable
management of tropical forests, forest restoration and other related activities.
The specific objective of the Programme is to strengthen the capacity of ITTO developing member countries
and their stakeholders to
reduce unplanned deforestation 10 ;reduce forest degradation;
maintain and enhance climate change mitigation and other environmental services of tropical forests;
contribute to the social and economic sustainability and well-being of forest-dependent communities
by increasing forest values through forest restoration and rehabilitation, as well as payments forforest-based environmental services; ande) enhance adaptation and resilience of tropical forests to negative effects of climate change andhuman-induced impacts.
a)
b)
c)
d)

3.

PROGRAMME STRATEGYThe Thematic Programme would focus primarily on four strategic areas: (i) assessment and diagnosis;(ii) enabling conditions and capacity-building; (iii) demonstration activities; and (iv) scaling up anddissemination. They represent a programmatic approach at country level to achieve the specific objective of
the Programme. The international and regional level actions are targeted at enhancing these national efforts
and to scale-up impacts through replication and dissemination (Figure 1).
The scope of the Thematic Programme covers all the main environmental services of tropical forests, i.e.:(i) climate change mitigation and adaptation through enhancement of carbon pools in the forest andavoidance of emissions from deforestation and degradation; (ii) maintenance and enhancement of
biodiversity, (iii) improvement of soil and water conservation; (iii) disaster prevention and flood control
through improved resilience; (iv) ecotourism, amenity and recreation values; (v) sustainable forest
production, and (vi) combination of various environmental services and other outputs within the SFM
implementation.
The Programme’s thematic focus is reduction of deforestation and forest degradation through expansion ofsustainably managed areas which also includes restoration of degraded secondary forests and rehabilitationof degraded forest lands.
The ultimate target groups are (i) forest communities and indigenous groups, and (ii) forest owners andmanagers. Part of forest degradation is caused by local residents, often in a way that leads to a pattern ofsmall-scale mosaic of deforestation, while most direct large-scale deforestation is driven by commercial
9

CPF 2008. Strategic Framework for Forests and Climate Change. A proposal by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests.

10

Deforestation that is inconsistent with sustainable land-use planning.

7

interests. Many local communities have demonstrated that, given secure tenure, necessary information, tools
and capacity as well as adequate economic incentives, they can sustainably manage their forests and carryout restoration and rehabilitation activities. 11
The intermediate target groups are civil society organizations, knowledge institutions, policy makers,
government agencies, relevant private organizations, and other forest stakeholders. The role of forest
management units operated by government agencies or private enterprises is also important as they are in
charge of implementing SFM in almost 37 million hectares in ITTO producer member countries, representing
4.5% of the total permanent forest estate in these countries. 12 Sustainable management of these forests
plays a key role in avoiding deforestation and degradation together with restoration and rehabilitation of
secondary and degraded forests. In order to create improvements in the situation, it is necessary to revise
policy and legal frameworks and to strengthen capacity among all stakeholders including government
agencies, forest communities, civil society organizations, and the private sector.
The main instrument of Programme implementation is providing support to the implementation ofprojects/pre-projects/activities proposed by stakeholders in the ITTO developing member countries andsubmitted through the national ITTO focal points to ensure a coordinated approach. These proposals should
fall under one or more of the four strategic areas of the REDDES Programme. In addition, a limited numberof ITTO implemented activities are carried out in capacity building, scaling up and dissemination and otherstrategic areas which will directly contribute to efforts in member countries. A preference is given to
proposals involving partnerships between forest communities, indigenous groups, the public sector, the civilsociety and the private sector.
A pilot country approach is applied to selected countries within which interested ITTO members are invited tosubmit their candidature for a programmatic country support involving all four areas of intervention. These
countries could be participants in the UN-REDD Programme, the FCPF and other related initiatives thereby
harnessing synergies with them.
Partnerships at operational level are a critical element of the implementation of the REDDES Programme.
Links and cooperation will be established with other initiatives related to REDD and other environmental
services such as the UN-REDD, FCPF and various bilateral programmes to ensure synergies andcomplementarity.
The purpose is to carry out joint/coordinated programming and planning of activities in selected pilot
countries under the leadership of the national government to prepare a country work programme where
specific activities are assigned to the REDDES and other support programmes On a national level, linkages
with broader national planning frameworks such as the national forest programme processes are
considered/established to ensure value is added and synergies are harnessed.

11E.g. Malleaux, J. et al. 2008. ibid.; Dourojeanni, M. & Seve, J. 2006 .Synthesis Report on Ex-Post Evaluations. Overall Evaluationof ITTO Projects on Community Participation in Sustainable Forest Management (Bolivia, Ghana, Panama, Peru, Philippines andTogo). ITTO. CRF(XXXIX)/6

12

ITTO. 2006. Status of Tropical Forest Management 2005. ITTO Technical Series 24. Yokohama, Japan.

8

The main Programme risks and how they can be addressed are as follows:
(i)

(ii)
(iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

For demonstration projects to lead to sustained results, long-term availability of economic
incentives to maintain and enhance environmental services for forest communities andlandowners should be ensured. This aspect can be incorporated in project work plans, e.g.
through participatory development of benefit sharing mechanisms and incentive systems which
can be financed by beneficiaries of environmental services.
Market incentives for converting forests to other land uses may become so strong that
unplanned deforestation and degradation cannot be avoided. This can be addressed by proper
valuation of all the forest benefits and effective communication.
New information and capacity development may not necessarily create targeted changes ingovernment decision making and stakeholder behavior; awareness should be created among a
critical mass of decision makers on needs and opportunities to reduce deforestation and forest
degradation through positive measures.
Adequate submission of proposals by country stakeholders may not be received. For thisreason, the Programme includes promotional activities and targeted capacity building support toassist forest-dependent communities and other disadvantaged stakeholders in the elaboration of
proposals that meet the Programme criteria.
Operational cooperation and coordination with related initiatives may not be successful atinternational, regional and country level. This risk will be addressed through transparent
implementation, active contacts with other key actors, and their engagement in the Programme’s
activities.
Adequate financing should be made available including counterpart financing. Targeted
fundraising efforts should be included in the Programme’s detailed work plans.

In accordance with the Decision 9/(XLIV) of the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC), the REDDES
Thematic Programme is implemented on a pilot basis during the first three years after which theeffectivenessof
its
operationwillbereviewed
andevaluated
by
the
ITTC.

9

Figure 1.

REDDES Programme Strategy

Programme
scopeCountry level-climatechangemitigation andadaptation

Assessment
and diagnosis

Support toestablishment ofenabling
conditions andcapacity building

Implementationofdemonstration
activities

Scaling up
anddissemination-biodiversity-soil & water
conservation-disaster
prevention-amenity andrecreation-NTFPs-multiple
resource use

Regional and international level
Methodologies
of inventory,
carbonaccounting,monitoring andverification

Policyinstruments,
financingmechanisms,
training
packages

Validated
technologies
andimplementation
approaches

Knowledge
management,
networking,information
sharing

10

Cooperation andpartnerships withrelatedinternational andregional initiatives

Targetgroups-ultimate:local
communities, forest
owners-intermediate:
government
agencies,
policymakers,CSOs,other stakeholders

Specific
objective- strengthened
capacity ofmembercountries
and their
stakeholders

Generalobjective-reduced
deforestationand forest
degradation-enhanced
values ofenvironmental
services-improved
livelihoods

4.

OUTCOMES/OUTPUTS/DELIVERABLES AND EXPECTED IMPACTS/BENEFITS

Outcomes/Outputs/Deliverables
Table 1.

Outcomes, Outputs and Deliverables of the REDDES ProgrammeSpecific objective
Strengthen the capacity of
ITTO developing member
countries
andtheirstakeholders toa) reduce deforestation;b) reduce forest
degradation;c) maintain and enhance
climate change
mitigation and otherenvironmental servicesof tropical forests;d) contribute to the socialand economic
sustainability and wellbeing of forestdependent communities
by increasing forest
values through forest
restoration andrehabilitation, as well as
payments for forestbased environmental
services; ande) enhance adaptation
and resilience oftropical forests to

Outcomes
Reduced deforestation andforest degradation andincreased area of forest
under sustainable
management in tropicaltimber producing forests

-

-

-

Outputs
Avoided deforestation, restoration orconservation initiatives established tocombat deforestation and degradation;
Integration of climate change
mitigation/adaptation and otherenvironmental services in the ITTO
guidelines on C&I, SFM, certification,
valuation, as appropriate to manage forest
area sustainably
Countries with adequate capacity to
implement SFM, restoration andrehabilitation of secondary and degraded
forest areas.
Increased recognition of the values oftropical forests
Income generation based on forest related
environmental services and other forest
outputs by local communities
Increased recognition of the values oftropical forests and their environmental
services

Improved livelihoods forforest dwellers and otherstakeholders directly
involved in the supply ofenvironmental services
through the sustainable
management of tropicalforests-

Improved resilience oftropical forest ecosystems
and forest-dependentcommunities- Quantification of carbon stocks performed
using reliable monitoring and assessment
technologies and/or valuation techniques- Value of biodiversity assessed and surveys-

11

Deliverables- Increase of the area under conservation and/or
SFM in the tropical forests in Programme impact
areas- Increase in the area of restored/rehabilitateddegraded forest in the Programme impact areas- Area of tropical forests under SFM; area of
restored and rehabilitated tropical forests andforest lands.

- Valuations of environmental services conducted- Potential for income generation activities realized
from forest-related environmental services andother outputs in Programme impact areas- Improved family income in communities directly
involved in the PES initiatives- Demonstrated willingness to pay forenvironmental services assessed and verified in
the area of intervention- Reduced deforestation in the Programme impact
area- Clear demonstration using biodiversity surveys orother ecosystem assessment tools to monitor

Specific objective
negative effects ofclimate change andhuman-induced
impacts.

Outcomes-

Improved capacities todevelop and implement
policies and incentive
mechanisms to promote
environmental services
through sustainable forest
management

Improved practices topromote and stimulate
community involvement in
the supply ofenvironmental services
from the sustainable
management of tropicalforests, and their wide
dissemination-

Outputs
conducted on land with potential forbiodiversity PES schemes
Assessments are made in an attempt to‘bundle’ environmental services, tomaximize improvement of forest landscapeCommunity initiatives taken to identify
opportunities to increase productive
capacity of forests, including byimplementing SFM schemes
Capacity building initiatives undertaken to
implement policy reforms and/or clarify
land/forest tenure arrangements
Information sharing and knowledge
management systems operational
PES incentive mechanisms assessed andestablishedCountries with improved capacity to
implement SFM, forest restoration andrehabilitation.

- Operational practices for community
involvement in development ofenvironmental services- Demonstration areas established- Information sharing mechanisms in place

12

Deliverables
changes in biological and physical characteristics
of forests- Reduced incidence of forest fire, insects, pests
and diseases, and other invasive species as well
as storm and other damage in tropical forests fortheir improved resilience to negative effects fromclimate change and human-induced impacts- Evidence on policy and legislative reforms in theprocess at least in three countries covered by the
Programme in the pilot phase- PES mechanisms developed or undergoing
implementation at least in three countries
covered by the Programme in the pilot phase- Evidence of inclusion of environmental services
in forest policy and planning documents, which
influence conservation and forest use- Trained human resources in implementation ofrestoration and rehabilitation activities and PES
schemes- Communities trained and assisted indevelopment and implementation of PES
mechanisms- Number of communities directly involved in PES
mechanisms developed and /or undergoing
implementation with the support of the
programme.

Specific objective

Outcomes
Improved cooperation andunderstanding on theimportance of REDDES
and payment forenvironmental services
among policy makers,
forest managers, andforest-dependent andother local communities

Outputs- Stakeholder consultations/dialogues
undertaken for awareness raising and toencourage cooperation among interested
parties

Deliverables- Evidence of inclusion of views from various
interested parties in forest management plansand payment for environmental services.
- Effective networking among various
stakeholders

Indicators and means of verification for outputs and deliverables will be developed in connection with setting the medium-term targets of the Programme.
Collection of baseline information will be included in relevant individual project and other interventions to facilitate monitoring and evaluation of Programme
outputs, outcomes and impacts.

13Expected Impacts/Benefits
The environmental impacts of the Programme comprise the maintenance and enhancement ofenvironmental services from tropical forests including reduced CO 2 emissions and increased carbon stocks,
enhanced biodiversity conservation, improved water quality and supply, reduced erosion, improved soil
protection and improved amenity values for recreation and ecotourism. These impacts would be a result of
expanded/stabilized forest cover and improved forest quality as a result of restoration, rehabilitation,
protection, conservation and other measures of SFM. The social and economic impacts of the Programme
are identified by target groups as follows:
For forest communities, indigenous groups and other forest dependent people the Programme will contributeto reduction in rural poverty, improved livelihoods through sustainable forest management, and improved
access to forest resources, increased employment and income in forest communities from payments forenvironmental services and implementation of increased restoration and rehabilitation activities, improved
ecosystem sustainability through conservation of biodiversity, soil and water resources, and improved skills
and social capital among forest communities. As forest-dependent people benefit from activities related tounsustainable logging and land-use conversion, the payments for environmental services shouldcompensate loss of income from reduced deforestation. Forest communities will also benefit from improved
technical skills and capacities to access new and emerging funding sources such as REDD.
For civil society organizations the Programme’s benefits derive from improved capacity to participate inpolicy development and strengthened capability to support forest communities in improving their livelihoods
and ecosystem services.
For the private sector the benefits derive from (a) the opportunity to participate as owner/s in newly
developed environmental services provided by the forests and (b) remuneration revenue from carbon offsets
generated but also voluntary emission-reduction efforts, (c) improved capacity to implement SFM including
restoration of degraded secondary forests and rehabilitation of degraded forest lands, as well as (d)increased financing to maintain and enhance environmental services. Private sector actors would achieve
results in their corporate social responsibility agreements by participating in the PES schemes, and could
also gain remuneration from carbon offsets generated.
For governments the REDDES Programme provides benefits through (a) improving information for policy
decisions concerning implementation of various mechanisms and approaches in the maintenance andenhancement of environmental services from tropical forests, (b) reduced needs for subsidies and otherpublic funding thanks to revenue created by a new source of income from payments for environmental
services, (c) improved institutional implementation capacity for restoration and rehabilitation of secondary
forests and degraded forest areas, (d) avoidance of unplanned deforestation and all types of forest
degradation, as well as (e) improved capacity for adaptation of tropical forests to negative effects brought
about by climate change and human-induced impacts.
For donors and the international community the Programme generates valuable lessons and new knowledge
on how emerging financing mechanisms such as REDD and other PES schemes can be implemented andhow existing support strategies can be enhanced to deliver the targeted global, national and local objectives.
The REDD and related international initiatives, in particular the UN-REDD Programme and the FCPF, would
benefit from the synergistic outputs of the REDDES which would improve their effectiveness. In this context,of particular importance are the medium and long-term benefits from the Programme activities which address
the implementation gap of SFM not covered by other initiatives.

5.

OTHER PARTNERS AND STAKEHOLDERS

The Programme is implemented in close cooperation with ITTO’s Civil Society Advisory Group (CSAG) and
Trade Advisory Group (TAG). The Programme will engage a number of partners in the implementation and it
will provide a direct contribution to the effectiveness of various other international, regional and bilateralprogrammes targeted at reduction in deforestation and forest degradation as well as enhancement ofenvironmental services from tropical forests. Relevant international, regional and national organizations andbodies include, inter alia, the UN-REDD Programme, the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility(FCPF), and the planned Forest Investment Programme (FIP). The REDDES Programme would be
implemented in cooperation with the relevant activities of the other CPF members within the Strategic
Framework for Forests and Climate Change of the Cooperative Partnership on Forests, and otherinternational and bilateral aid agencies as appropriate. Specific operational coordination mechanisms are
established with the UN-REDD Programme to enhance synergies between the two initiatives. Relevant parts
14

of the Programme are implemented in cooperation with the Global Partnership for Forest Landscape
Restoration (GPFLR) and international, national and local civil society organizations with experience onbuilding capacity for sustainable management, restoration of degraded secondary tropical forests andrehabilitation of degraded forest lands among local communities and forest managers.
Several regional organizations such as OTCA, COMIFAC, NEPAD, ASEAN, CCAD, ECOWAS, etc. have orare planning their own programmes related to enhancing environmental services from tropical forests. The
Programme will work in close cooperation with new emerging regional cooperation mechanisms, such as the
Asian Forests Cooperation Organization (to be established soon), which will also focus on mitigation ofclimate change and combating deforestation and desertification through forestry cooperation projects. The
REDDES Programme is designed to support the implementation all the listed initiatives.
At national level, the REDDES programme establishes partnerships also with key stakeholders and actors
outside the forest sector who can influence the extra-sectoral drivers of deforestation and forest degradation.
As financing for mainstreaming of the PES schemes will have to come from other sources, cooperation isestablished with interested private sector actors, including financing institutions.

6.

ACTIVITIESIn this section an indicative non-exhaustive list of activities which can be supported by the Programme isprovided. As country situations vary, necessary support interventions can differ and therefore other activities
which are consistent with the Programme objectives may be considered in decision-making on the approvalof proposals.
Proposals for projects/pre-projects/activities can include several elements from different action areas of theProgramme if deemed appropriate. Proposals should be prepared in accordance with the ITTO Manual for
Project Formulation (2008).
A.

Assessment and diagnosis

1) Improve data and knowledge on forest environmental services and their enhancement. The quality ofplanning for forest-related interventions depends on the availability and accuracy of data and information
related to the state of, and threats to, forest resources, deforestation and forest degradation as well as
their climate change impacts and other losses in forest values. The Programme supports the following
activities in which countries are lacking data and knowledge on the extent and potential of environmental
services in order to make informed decisions on the environmental services of tropical forests:(a) Forest cover and forest resources assessments which also consider forest environmental services,with an emphasis on sub-national and local scale assessments;(b) Pilot multi-purpose forest inventories which would also include elements for quantification andqualification of forest environmental services;(c) Estimation of forest carbon stocks, including emissions from deforestation and forest degradation
based on already existing tools for this purpose (under this activity, the Programme would assist
countries to apply available international guidance and methodologies for country specific conditions); and/or(d) Estimation and quantification of diverse forest environmental services and their values, including
using forest accounting(e) Establishment/strengthening of comprehensive databases on forest-resource assessments,
including environmental services at the country, regional, or international levels
In addition to these technical aspects, the Programme’s assessment and diagnostic activities also cover
the following policy aspects to serve as a basis for planning and design of enabling conditions for SFM
and establishment of adequate country capacity:(f) Assessment of the adequacy of national and sub-national policy, legal and institutional frameworks
to promote biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation and adaptation, watershed
conservation and other environmental services through sustainable forest management;(g) Land and forest tenure assessments to clarify rights;(h) Assessment of the potential and feasibility of market-based and other remuneration systems forcompensating environmental services from forests (e.g. market surveys, supply surveys, options forremuneration market and non-market-based mechanisms, legal aspects, etc.);
15

(i) Assessment of needs for capacity-building, institutional strengthening, training and outreach;(j) Development of tools and methodologies in the above topics which are cost-efficient, which canengage communities in data collection, processing and monitoring, and which are otherwise
innovative and have prospects for scaling up and dissemination.
B.

Enabling conditions and capacity-building2) Creation of enabling conditions for reducing deforestation and forest degradation and enhancing
environmental services in tropical forests. Activities are aimed at establishing enabling policy, legal andinstitutional frameworks and governance structures related to the reduction of emissions fromdeforestation and degradation, and enhancement of other environmental services.
(a) Formulation of national and sub-national forest policies and integration of REDDES activities inbroader national policies on environment. climate change and sustainable development (analyticalwork and process support to revision of the policy and institutional frameworks) as well as
development of national initiatives to address drivers of deforestation and forest degradation; thismay include necessary actions for restoration and rehabilitation of secondary forests and degraded
forest areas; policy development can also include design and testing of compensation and financing
mechanisms for forest environmental services;(b) Revision of legislation, including by strengthening tenure security and resource access, in order toenable implementation of compensation mechanisms for forest environmental services;(c) Design and piloting of mechanisms for remuneration of environmental services from tropical forests
3) Capacity building among government agencies, civil society organizations, forest community-basedorganizations, indigenous groups, the private sector and other relevant stakeholders for the following
activities:(a) Awareness raising among decision makers and the public(b) Training covering: (i) sustainable management, restoration of degraded secondary forests andrehabilitation of degraded forest lands; (ii) forest resource assessment and inventories; and(iii) quantification, valuation, monitoring and verification of environmental services. This activity may
include development of nationally applicable manuals and other training materials as well asorganization of training events;(c) Technical support and on-the-job training in proposal formulation for raising financing for investments
and transaction/operational costs of maintenance and enhancement of environmental services fromtropical forests with special emphasis on forest communities and participation of other forest
dependent people;(d) Organization of regional forest and land tenure conferences and workshops to promote clarificationof tenure rights for environmental services and to reduce deforestation and degradation and torestore and rehabilitate degraded forests;(e) Development and dissemination of (i) manuals or guidelines on best practices related tomeasurement, assessment, reporting and verification of forest resources and their environmental
services, including valuation; and (ii) guides and technical documentation for the planning andimplementation of projects and programmes for reducing deforestation and forest degradation andenhancing environmental services from tropical forests;(f) Support to effective participation of forest sector representatives in international climate change
negotiations
C.

Demonstration activities

4) Demonstration activities are implemented by government agencies, civil society organizations,community groups, the private sector and other stakeholders. They can include implementation of fieldlevel demonstration projects and activities on sustainable forest management, restoration of degraded
forests and rehabilitation of degraded forest lands to help avoid deforestation, reduce degradation andrealize the benefits of environmental services with the involvement of local communities. Demonstration
activities of the Programme should include elements for validation of successful approaches. In
demonstration activities the Programme focuses on the following types of community/forest management
unit (FMU) level projects:(a) Restoration of degraded forests and rehabilitation of degraded forest lands;
16

(b) Strengthening of community involvement in forest governance and law compliance to prevent
deforestation and reduce forest degradation;(c) Sustainable forest management planning and implementation activities within the context of multiple
use and environmental services (e.g. reduced impact logging, silvicultural measures, etc.);(d) Participatory approaches involving indigenous and other local groups in planning and implementing
forest management including benefit sharing from compensation schemes for forest environmental
services;(e) Design and implementation of pilot projects to develop successful cases of payments forenvironmental services including market-based and other financing mechanisms;(f) Establishment and management of trans-boundary conservation areas;(g) Other measures to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and to enhanceenvironmental services from tropical forests (e.g. development of alternative livelihoods schemes,
agroforestry systems, etc.)
D.

Scaling up and dissemination

5) Scaling up and dissemination(a) Activities may include establishment of listservers, networks, communication products and events,
etc. for awareness raising, and scaling up of successful experiences (e.g. through policy adjustment,
regulatory changes, extension, institutional development, etc.). Programme support can be provided
to activities dedicated to the replication and scaling up of, inter alia, successful demonstration
projects, sharing of lessons learned, successful experiences and appropriate technology,
participatory approaches, as well as innovative approaches and financing mechanisms, related toenhancement of environmental services schemes in tropical forests;(b) The Programme provides support for sharing information and lessons learned regionally andinternationally, in cooperation with FAO, the UN-REDD Programme, FCPF, FIP and other relevant
initiatives and actors, as appropriate, through databases related to environmental services,
networking, listservers, workshops and seminars, communication, and other means. The
Programme can undertake complementary cross-cutting actions targeted at multiple positive impacts
to facilitate the implementation of the Programme in an integrated manner.
If necessary, ITTO may upon request provide technical assistance to interested poor forest-dependentcommunities to formulate proposals for the sustainable management of their forests for reduction of
deforestation and forest degradation as well as enhancement of environmental services from tropical forests.

7.

WORK PLAN, INCLUDING BUDGET ESTIMATES AND DONOR CONTRIBUTIONSWork Plan
The general indicative work plan is given in Table 2. Detailed annual work plans will be prepared to
implement the Programme. Two rounds of call for submissions by stakeholders through the ITTO focal points
are arranged per year. During the first year the following activities are planned.
a) Promotion of the Programme launching through various ITTO organized and participated events tocreate awareness among stakeholders on the availability of programme supportb) Identification of the first pilot country and joint programming of interventions together with the UNREDD and other interested partiesc) Organization of the first two rounds of submissions by stakeholdersd) Financing and implementation of 2-3 demonstration projectse) Provision of support for project formulation to stakeholders who have requested this assistance(activity 3(b))f) Organization of a conference on forest and land tenure (activity 3(c))

17Table 2.

General work plan
Actions

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

1. Programme launching and promotion
2. Calls for proposals●

3. Advisory Committee meetings

●

●
●

●
●

●
●

●
●

●
●

●

4. Country programme approach withpartners- Country 1- Country 2- Country 3
5. Implementation of TP activities- A. Assessment and diagnosis- B. Enabling conditions and capacity
building- C. Demonstration projects- D. Scaling up and dissemination●

6. Annual monitoring reports●

7. Review and evaluation of the
REDDES pilot phase by the ITTC●●

Budget estimates
An indicative three-year budget that would result in significant improvements in reduced deforestation andforest degradation and enhanced environmental services in the three tropical regions is US$18 million (Table
3).

Table 3.

REDDES Thematic Programme Budget (Indicative)

Activity (US$ 1,000)
A. Assessment and Diagnosis
B. Enabling Conditions and Capacitybuilding
C. Demonstration Activities
D. Scaling up and Dissemination
SUBTOTAL
Programme Management (9.5%)
GRAND TOTAL

Year 1850.0

Year 21150.0Year 3700.0

Total
2,700.0

Per cent
16.4

1,029.3

1,231.8

1,522.2

3,783.4

23.0

550.0
210.0
2,639.3

2,330.0795.0
5,506.8

4,260.0
1,810.08292.2

7,140.0
2,815.0
16,438.4

43.4
17.1
100.0

250.7

523.2

787.8

1,561.6

2,890.0

6,030.09,080.0

18,000.0

Donor contributions
PledgedBalanceUS$ 3,500,000
US$ 14,500,000

TOTAL

US$ 18,000,000

The Government of Norway has pledged US$3.5 million which enables programme implementation tocommence in early 2009. The Governments of Japan, Switzerland and USA have also expressed theirinterest in contributing to funding of the REDDES Programme.

18In addition to donor contributions, implementing agencies for activities or projects developed in theframework of this agreement are also expected to contribute financial and in-kind resources, taking into
account their roles, responsibilities and capacities, in principle, with a share consistent with the level of such
inputs in the existing ITTO project portfolio. The counterpart contributions (in-kind) include provision oflogistical support comprised of services of staff members, office spaces, transportation, etc., provided by the
implementing agencies. On average ITTO projects include counterpart contribution from implementing
agencies of 10-20% of the ITTO budget and this average level is targeted in the Thematic Programme.

II.

OPERATIONAL ELEMENTS

Composition of the Thematic Programme Advisory Committee
The Advisory Committee (AC) has the following composition:a)Three producer member representatives with recognized expertise on the Thematic Programme;b)
At least one non-donor consumer member representative with recognized expertise on the Thematic
Programme;c)Expert representatives of interested donors and collaborating institutions; andd)Executive Director or his designated representative.
In consultation with members, the Executive Director will invite individuals to participate on Thematic
Programme Advisory Committees.
As a general rule, the membership will not exceed seven members, taking into account the need forbalanced representation among members.
The task of the AC is to assist the Executive Director with the implementation of the Thematic Programme
as follows:
a)
b)
c)

Selection of activities/pre-projects/projects for financing under the Thematic Programme;
Monitoring and evaluation of progress in implementing the Thematic Programme; andIdentification of potential additional sources of voluntary financial contributions to the Thematic
Programme

As a general rule, the AC works and coordinates through electronic means and meets once a year.

Specific selection criteria for proposed activities/projects/pre-projects
In selecting activities/pre-projects/projects for financing, the Thematic Programme Advisory Committee willconsider the following general criteria:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)

Conformity with the Thematic Programme Document and ITTA objectives;
Technical feasibility;
Cost effectiveness;
Environmental and social effects;
Linkages or relevance to other activities/pre-projects/projects under the programme;
Applicability/extension of results, e.g. regionally or globally;
Clear quantitative and qualitative indicators to evaluate progress towards achieving programme
objectives;
Measures to verify the coherence and effectiveness of individual activities/pre-projects/ projects
funded under the programme;
Overall impact and sustainability of outputs and outcomes; andMechanisms for effective stakeholder participation.

In addition, the AC will consider the following specific criteria

19

k)
l)

Potential impact to the achievement of the specific objectives of the Thematic Programme,
particularly reduced deforestation and forest degradation
Contribution to the Programme deliverables

Administrative arrangements
The Programme is implemented under the direction of the Executive Director of ITTO. The Programme iscoordinated by a full-time coordinator assisted by secretarial support staff.

Monitoring and evaluation procedures
The Programme is monitored according the procedures of the ITTO Manual for Project Monitoring, Review,
Reporting and Evaluation and using the Organization’s on-line monitoring system as appropriate.
The Advisory Committee monitors the progress of Programme implementation at least once a year based on
the information generated by the monitoring system, including periodic progress reports. A programmatic
monitoring protocol will be developed for the Programme as a whole.
In accordance with the Decision 9/(XLIV) of the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC) the Executive
Director will report at each Council session on the development, status and other relevant information on thepilot operation of the Thematic Programme, and to keep Members informed inter-sessionally through the
ITTO web site.
The effectiveness of the pilot operation of the Thematic Programmes will be reviewed and evaluated after
three years by the ITTC.

Technical and financial reporting procedures
The Programme has standardized reporting formats on individual activities/pre-projects/projects and theThematic Programme as a whole. The reporting elements include work-plan, budget, regular progress,
technical and completion reports, inclusive of narrative reports and financial reports, formats for consolidated
narrative and financial reports, monitoring and evaluation reports. The provisions of the ITTO Manual for
Project Monitoring, Review, Reporting and Evaluation will apply, as appropriate. Donor contributions are notearmarked to specific projects/pre-projects/activities and a common reporting framework will be applied forparticipating donors rather than individual reports for each donor.

20

Annex 1.

Impacts

Problem Tree Analysis of the REDDES Thematic Programme
Reduced supplyof forest
products andservices

Increasedpoverty anddeteriorated
livelihoods

Increased
CO 2
emissions

Loss of habitats
and reductionof their quality

Inappropriate
deforestation

Directeffects

Sub-causes

Increasedsoil
erosionUnsustainably managed secondary anddegraded forests

Reducedresilience andincreasedvulnerability todisasters

Environmental
refugees,
migration andsocial conflicts

Degraded forest
lands

Inadequate capacity to maintain and enhanceenvironmental services of tropical forests

Key problem

Direct causes

Reduced water
quality andsupplyInappropriate policies
legislation andinstitutional frameworks

Povertyamong forestdependentcommunities

Lack ofawarenesson policy failures
and best practice

Lack of investment in
SFM and restoration

Insecure land/
forest tenure

Inadequate capacity tomake informed decisions
on maintenance ofenvironmental services

Lack of financing
mechanisms for forest
environmental services

21

Lack of assessmentand monitoring offorest resources

Lack of trained
human resources

Lack of educationand training in SFM,
restoration andrehabilitation

Lack of awareness of,and access to,appropriate technology

Lack of appropriatetechnology andadequate knowledge

ANNEX 2
THEMATIC PROGRAMME APPRAISAL PROCESS

Submission of proposals
by proponent

Clearance by the ITTO
country focal point

Screening/pre-appraisal by
the Secretariat

Distribution of pre-appraisal forms andproposal documents to TPAC members

Review by TPAC members- comments

Integration of comments and pre-selection by the
Secretariat- distribution to TPAC members

Recommendation by TPAC members

ED decision22