I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2264
To authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2004 and 2005 to carry out 
the Congo Basin Forest Partnership (CBFP) program, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 22, 2003
Mr. SHAW (for himself, Mr. ROYCE, and Mr. HOUGHTON) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations 
A BILL 
To authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2004 and 2005 
to carry out the Congo Basin Forest Partnership 
(CBFP) program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Congo Basin Forest 
Partnership Act of 2003’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The tropical forests of the Congo Basin, lo-
cated in the Central African countries of Cameroon,
the Central African Republic, the Democratic Re-
public of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the 
Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, and Sao 
Tome/Principe, are second in size only to the trop-
ical forests of the Amazon Basin. 
(2) These forests are a crucial economic re-
source for the people of the Central African region. 
(3) Congo Basin forests play a critical role in 
sustaining the environment—absorbing carbon diox-
ide, cleansing water, and retaining soil. 
(4) Congo Basin forests contain the most di-
verse grouping of plants and animals in Africa, in-
cluding rare and endangered species, such as the 
lowland gorilla, mountain gorilla, chimpanzee, and 
okapi. These plants and animals are invaluable for 
many reasons, including their genetic and bio-
chemical information, which could spark advances in 
medical, agricultural, and industrial technology. 
(5) Logging operations, driven by a growing 
global demand for tropical hardwoods, are shrinking 
these forests. One estimate has logging taking out 
Congo Basin forest area at a rate of twice the size 
of the State of Rhode Island every year. 
(6) The construction of logging roads and other 
developments are putting intense hunting pressure
(12) In September 2002, Secretary of State 
Colin Powell launched the Congo Basin Forest Part-
nership (CBFP) in Johannesburg, South Africa. The 
CBFP promotes the conservation and sustainable 
use of the region’s forests, for example, by working 
to combat poaching, illegal logging, and other 
unsustainable practices, and giving local populations 
an economic stake in the preservation of the forests, 
including through the development of ecotourism. 
(13)(A) The United States contribution to the 
CBFP will focus on conserving 11 key landscapes in 
6 countries—Cameroon, the Central African Repub-
lic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equa-
torial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of Congo—
identified at the Yaounde Forest Summit as being of 
the greatest biological importance to the region. 
(B) The United States will fund field-based ac-
tivities within these 25,000,000 acres that aim to 
support a network of 27 national parks and pro-
tected areas and well-managed forestry concessions. 
(C) In this way, the work will build on existing 
United States efforts, including those of the Central 
African Regional Program for the Environment 
(CARPE) of the United States Agency for Inter-
national Development, which will implement the 
CBFP. 
(14) The CBFP has broad international finan-
cial support, including from non-African govern-
ments, the European Commission, the International 
Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and nu-
merous nongovernment organizations. 
(15) A dramatic step toward conserving Congo 
Basin forests has recently been taken by Gabon. In 
September 2002, President Omar Bongo announced 
the creation of 13 national parks, representing over 
10 percent of Gabon’s surface area. Previously, 
Gabon had no national park system. 
(16) With the CBFP and other initiatives, 
there exists unprecedented momentum for the con-
servation of Congo Basin forests. 
SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro-
priated to the President to carry out the Congo Basin For-
est Partnership (CBFP) program $18,600,000 for each 
of the fiscal years 2004 and 2005. Of the amounts appro-
priated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations 
under the preceding sentence for a fiscal year, 
$16,000,000 is authorized to be made available to the 
Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment
(CARPE) of the United States Agency for International 
Development. 
(b) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pursuant 
to the authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) 
are authorized to remain available until expended.
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