Status of Tropical Forest
Management 2011

INTERNATIONAL TROPICAL TIMBER ORGANIZATION (ITTO)

Background• Status of Tropical Forest
Management (‘SFM Tropics’)
report first published in 2006
• In 2008-09 work programme
Council initiated follow-up
report to SFM Tropics 2005
• ITTO member countries
requested to submit
information on status of forestmanagement

Results of 2005 report• Natural tropical PFE estimated at 814 m ha,comprising 353 m ha of production PFE and461 m ha of protection PFE• Area of natural forest under management
plans estimated at 96.2 m ha• 10.5 m ha of natural production PFE certified

Results of 2005 report
Total PFE under SFM estimated at 36.4 m ha.
Of the total:• 25.2 m ha in production PFE• 11.2 m ha in protection PFE

Purpose of SFM Tropics 2011
To update and improve these estimates• Estimate area of tropical forest set aside asproduction and protection PFE and underSFM• To detect trends in these• To inform climate-change debate,particularly on REDD
• To provide a comprehensive and up-to-dateinsight into forest management in tropics

Methodology• Member countries requested to supply information– in ITTO C&I reporting format• Partner organizations – especially FAO andUNEP-WCMC – provided data
• Authors compiled country profiles using submitted
C&I reports, data from partner organizations, andother sources, including consultations with incountry experts and stakeholders• Profiles reviewed by in-country, regional andinternational experts• Global analysis based on country profiles

C&I reporting format
No of countries submitting

Score

2005

2010

2005

2010

2332

1.5

1.9

0 = no information submitted, 1 = information given was not of use for reporting; 2 = information
given was partly of use for reporting; 3 = information given was useful for reporting• EIGHT countries prepared their reports without
requesting ITTO’s limited financial assistance Indicates growing capacity to generate andsupply data as part of routine work
• But still considerable problems with data
availability and quality for many indicators of SFM

Methodology (cont’d)‘Sustainably managed’ forest = the sum of forest
management units that:• Are independently certified or making progress
towards certification• Have fully developed, long-term (10 year +)management plans and evidence they are being
implemented• Are ‘model’ forests with information onmanagement quality• Are community-based units with secure tenureand known high-quality management

Proviso for comparison between
surveys• Differences in methods used (according tonature of data available) means country
information not always directly comparable
between surveys – e.g. India non-tropical/tropicalResults of 2011 report• Natural tropical PFE estimated at 761 m ha(slight decrease from 2005 due to better data),
comprising 403 m ha of production PFE and358 m ha of protection PFE• Area of natural forest under management
plans estimated at 183 m ha, an increase of
69 m ha since 2005 (>60% increase)• 17 m ha of natural production PFE certified,
an increase of 6.5 m ha (>60% increase)Results of 2011 report (cont’d)
Total PFE under SFM estimated at 53.3 m ha,up from 36.4 m ha (almost 50% increase).
Of the total:• 30.6 m ha are in the production PFE (up from25.2 m ha, >20% increase)• 22.7 m ha are in protection PFE (up from 11.2m ha, >100% increase)Results of 2011 report (cont’d)• New international measures to combat
illegal trade introduced• Increased transparency, increased
stakeholder participation, and increased
interest in SFM at community level• Many countries positioning for REDD
• More international assistance required forforest inventories, particularly given theinformation demands of REDD
• More progress needed to clarify concept ofPFE

Results of 2011 report (cont’d)• Trend towards decentralization and greater
recognition of Indigenous and local people
not yet matched by flow of resources tosupport SFM at decentralized levels• Forest law enforcement still often weak
• Resources allocated to forest management
seriously inadequate• Information continues to improve but still far
from adequate, ITTO and partners (eg FAO)
should work together to overcome thisproblem

Summary of trends – production PFERegion

AfricaA/PLACAll tropics

Area of forest in:
Production
PFE

Production PFE
under management
plans

Certifiedforest

Production
PFE underSFM
















Note: A/P = Asia and the Pacific; LAC = Latin America and the Caribbean

Summary of trends – protection PFE
RegionArea of forest in:ProtectionPFEAfrica
A/PLACAll tropics

Protection PFE undermanagement plansProtection PFE
under SFM

Note: A/P = Asia and the Pacific; LAC = Latin America and the Caribbean

Conclusions• Overall, there appears to have beensome progress towards SFM in tropical forestsin the period 2005 to 2010
• REDD is important as a potential funding
source but needs to be combined with otherways to add value to tropical forests to ensure
they are not converted to more lucrative landuses

Dissemination and PR• Hard copies of report in 3 official languages• Summary of report in 4 languages• Web page and USB stick versions• International launch in Bern; regional launches
in Malaysia, DRC, Brazil and Guatemala ITTC
as part of ITTO’s IYF activities• Worldwide press coverage

Thank you