Country Director Elena Tischenko's remarks at workshop on sustainable forest management project

First of all, I would like to take this opportunity to express, on behalf of UNDP in Cambodia, our deepest and sincere condolences to the families of victims of the recent flooding, which is the worst that has ever occurred in Cambodia in more than a decade. As a result, about 247 were reported dead and 20 injuries were recorded, some 30,000 families had to relocate from their homes, about 405,000 hectares of rice fields have been affected and 4,469 kilometers of rural roads were damaged or destroyed. This is one of salient impacts of climate change, resulting from changes in land use, as many have agreed.
    
The SFM project is one of the first important projects that Forestry Administration (FA), Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) will be undertaking to promote sustainable forest development through involvement of local communities. By engaging local communities, this project will not just contribute to protecting the precious forest resource but to ensuring the very means for livelihood of villagers also. As we all know, more than 80 percent of the Cambodian population live in the countryside. Among them there are rural Cambodians who are living within 10 to 15 km from forest areas on which they depend for day-to-day foods and sources of additional incomes. The forestlands serve as vital source of livelihoods for these communities. Studies have found that 30% to 40% of total incomes of rural people come from forestlands in the form of non-timber forest products (NTFP) such as honey, rattan, bamboo, resin, and mushroom, etc. They also depend on the forest for firewood and charcoal as source of energy to use in their families and to supply to their consumers. Nationwide, more than 80% of Cambodian household rely on firewood and charcoal for energy. Deforestation – through many forms – has substantially reduced the forest cover in Cambodia. According the statistics of the Forestry Administration, the forest cover presently stands at 59% compared to 73% in the 1960s. The Cambodian Millennium Development Goal 7 has set the target to maintain the forest cover at 60% by 2015. But realizing this target can be in doubt if deforestation is left unchecked.

It is in this purpose – to help Cambodia achieve its CMDG 7 – that the SFM was born and which we are setting into motion at this inception workshop today. With only about four years left before the 2015 MDG deadline we need to identify and pursue the ways to accelerate the progress in MDG 7 including, importantly, the targets related to sustainable management of forest. In fact, we look forward to working together with national partners soon after this workshop to convene a high-level dialogue on MDG 7, especially its forest-related targets, to discuss and agree on such acceleration framework.

The Sustainable Forest Management project that we are discussing today is expected to contribute to reversing the trend of forest loss. Through it, Community Forestry (CF) and Community Protected Areas (CPA) will be developed with participation of villagers and with understanding of the importance of biodiversity offered by the forest in their surrounding as well as the role that communities have to play in managing and protecting the forest to support their lives.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The National Forestry Programme (NFP) aims to allocate 2 million hectares of forest areas as community forests by 2029. In it, the development of Community Forestry is a core programme. Development of both Community Forestry and Community Protected Areas aims to empower communities by building their capacity to improve their livelihoods and at the same time contribute to sustainable forest management. The programme on Sustainable Forest Management consists of three main components that focus on Community Forestry, Community Protected Area and sustainable energy development. It seeks to:

1.    Enhance national capacities to facilitate and broaden implementation of sustainable community-based forest management and technologies that reduce demand for fuel wood.
2.    Demonstrate community-based sustainable forest management at provincial, district and commune levels to generate good practices and concrete benefits to communities that will be useful for refining policy regarding forest management.
3.     Improve energy efficient cook stoves to strike the balance between demand and supply of fuel wood.

The Forestry Administration will manage implementation of these three components in collaboration with the General Department of Administration for Nature Conservation and Protection of the Ministry of Environment (MOE), Ministry of Industry Mine and Energy, and Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction. UNDP very much welcome this collaborative approach among the concerned sectors and ministries, and will play a supportive role to assure successful implementation of the project.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Again, today we gathered to mark the commencement of the project. For this programme to succeed in achieving its important outcomes, the commitments from all stakeholders are vital. In this regard, I firmly believe that the Forestry Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries will play central role in coordinating will all stakeholders in an open and transparent manner. Towards this end, already today we have opportunity to discuss a number of topics of importance for effective management of the project:

a)    We will review the role of the implementing partner, namely Forestry Administration, as well as the roles of other partners (that the project names as ‘responsible parties’), which include providers of technical assistance and other line agencies. , We will review the support services and complementary responsibilities of UNDP country office.

b)    It will be useful to discuss synergies with other projects that are implemented in the same provinces with support from other development partners and the ways in which various projects can jointly contribute to increasing income for communities, capacity development, improved regulatory framework for decentralized forest management and reduction in CO2 emissions.

c)    It will be important also to agree on the Strategic Results Framework of the project including its expected outputs, indicators and targets and risks. 

d)     Finally, we need to make sure the project incorporates communication and gender mainstreaming strategies among its key components.

With our focus on business development of Community Forestry and Community Protected Areas, we hope the project will complement other collaborative programmes supported by the EU, DANIDA, JICA, and USAID and AFD. Areas of synergies include community forestry development and support to Community Protected Areas through preparation of business-oriented management plans, support to community-based income generation and poverty reduction, development of new regulatory framework for all community forestry modalities, and support to the Cambodia’s UN-REDD Programme. At the same time, I would like to encourage the Forestry Administration (FA) and the General Department of Administration for Nature Conservation and Protection (GDANCP) to simplify the process of granting legal status of community forestry and community protected areas. Doing so will lead to increased support and participation of local communities in forest protection and biodiversity conservation.

In closing, I would like to thank all the participants who have taken the time to join us in today’s inception workshop.

We are very pleased to see the representatives from different ministries, development partner agencies, provincial and local authorities and NGOs. Such a broad spectrum of participants bears witness to our shared concern and joint commitment to address forest degradation and improve sustainable forest management in Cambodia.

I wish you the best of success in these important endeavors and look forward to our continued close collaboration in the months and years to come.
Thank you!