South- SouthSharing what works in sustainable and equitable  oil palm development for food and biofuels
Autor: Renata Marson | Publicado: 2011-09-26T23:25:00-04:00

South–South exchange&nbsp; 

Organised by CIFOR as part of the project&nbsp;&nbsp; 
&nbsp;‘Bioenergy, sustainability and trade-offs: can we avoid deforestation while 
promoting bioenergy?’ 


21– 27 September 2011 
Bogor, Indonesia 

Background 
The palm oil industry is anticipating further expansion to fulfil growing demands for food, and to supply palm oil for the biofuels markets. Indonesia is the world’s largest producer of palm oil. Indonesia and Malaysia together supply 85% of the global demand for palm oil. Indonesia has the potential to become a world biodiesel leader with a model for plantation sustainability. Due to its long history in the development of this commodity, Indonesia offers valuable lessons on the pros and cons of different business models for land use and benefits distribution. The expansion plans for oil palm in Indonesia, however, have also raised concerns about unintended social, economic and environment implications. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil has established an international standard for certified palm oil, but recent developments in the country indicate the creation of a new national standard is needed. This exchange aims to examine lessons on what has worked to date with the national RSPO standards and potential adjustments so as to blueprint a credible international standard. We have witnessed a rising demand for palm oil; increasing land allocated to oil palm plantations in many countries in Latin America and Africa; and the shift in oil palm investment by 
corporate actors from Southeast Asia region to some African countries. Therefore, sharing lessons amongst relevant actors on sustainable and equitable oil palm development options would benefit many stakeholders.&nbsp; 
Purpose - This South–South exchange initiative aims to promote the sharing of experiences and knowledge amongst key policy decision makers, industry representatives and researchers from countries in southeast Asia, sub- Saharan Africa and Latin America, including Brazil, Cameroon, Colombia, Ghana, Indonesia and Malaysia. 
Topics will include sustainable and equitable options for oil palm development, and recommended policy shifts in these countries to support the transitions towards more equitable and sustainable models. 
Participants 
Participants will include two representatives each from Cameroon, Colombia, Brazil and Ghana; four from Malaysia; and invited participants from Indonesia linked to the government, the private sector and independent policy advisors. The participants are expected to share their experiences of oil palm 
development in their own countries during the formal and informal sharing sessions. Field visits will provide opportunities for more informal sharing and discussion around the different topics to be covered.&nbsp; 
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Approaches 
The exchange will include the following activities. 
 Discussions and face-to-face interactions with relevant institutions and organisations 
 Field visits to oil palm plantations to learn from experiences of the private sector and from local actors 
 Attend a discussion forum on the options and challenges for oil palm development as part of the CIFOR 
workshop ‘Forests Indonesia: Alternative futures to meet demands for food, fibre, fuel and REDD+’&nbsp; 
Topics&nbsp; 
Topics to be covered during these events will include:&nbsp; 
 Legal and institutions frameworks governing oil palm business and development 
 Land acquisition and production partnerships amongst large-scale plantations and smallholders 
 Effectiveness of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil and corporate social responsibility 
 On-the-ground realities for oil palm plantations and smallholders invested and working in oil palm 
plantations in Sumatra. 
&nbsp;Draft schedule 
Discussion sessions amongst public and private&nbsp; 
actors in the oil palm sector 21–22 September CIFOR campus, Bogor 
Field visit to a certified oil palm company and 
smallholder production schemes 23–25 September Riau Province, Sumatra 
Visit to government planning agencies and 
relevant ministries 26 September Jakarta 
Participation in Forests Indonesia conference,&nbsp; 
‘Alternative futures to meet demands for food,&nbsp; 
fibre, fuel and REDD+’ 
27 September Jakarta 
Anticipated outcomes 
By conveying evidence-based knowledge from policy analysis and practitioners’ lessons learnt to key 
decision makers in government, industry and civil society, we expect participants will take away examples of 
‘what works’ in sustainable oil palm development. We plan to produce a policy brief in Indonesian and 
English that summarises the main lessons learnt. We will disseminate the policy brief to all participants of 
Forests Indonesia as part of conference follow-on activities as well as to key actors in the oil palm sector 
through CIFOR and partner knowledge-sharing platforms. 



&nbsp; 
&nbsp;&nbsp; 
&nbsp;Center for International Forestry Research&nbsp; 
CIFOR advances human wellbeing, environmental conservation and equity by conducting research to inform 
policies and practices that affect forests in developing countries. CIFOR is one of 15 centres within the 
Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). CIFOR’s headquarters are in Bogor, 
Indonesia. It also has offices in Asia, Africa and South America. 
www.cifor.cgiar.org&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; www.ForestsClimateChange.org&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;