Cambodia UN-REDD National Programme (UN Collaborative Programme)

Purpose of Project

The programme aims to enable Cambodia to be ready for REDD+ implementation, including development of necessary institutions, policies and capacity. It would help Cambodia to recognize biodiversity conservation co-benefit and to achieve its national target of maintaining 60% forest cover, which is a key indicator for the Cambodia Millennium Development Goal 7. It would also align with the National Forest Programme which aims to develop and manage forests to ensure the sustainable benefits for improving livelihoods, environmental services and overall economic development.

Main Activities

The programme will undertake the following activities:

• Establish National REDD+ Readiness Coordination Mechanism which consists of multi-government agencies
• Support National REDD+ Readiness process by establishing Taskforce Secretariat and REDD+ Advisory Group
• Encourage stakeholders’ engagement from civil society, non-governmental organizations and private sector in the REDD+ Readiness process and develop a comprehensive national consultation validation process for the National REDD+ Strategy and Implementation Framework
• Develop a work plan for awareness raising on REDD+ by establishing effective communication tools on REDD+,  such as setting up website and knowledge sharing mechanism for REDD+ documents and information, and ensure stakeholders provide information on REDD+ and the National REDD+ Readiness process
• Develop individual REDD+ strategies and implementation modalities through capacity building and training to ministries, strengthening related laws and policies, investigating how to integrate REDD+ into community forestry and protected forest regulations
• Analyze existing fund mechanisms under Cambodian Law and establish REDD+ Fund mechanisms
• Develop policy and regulations for the National REDD+ implementation framework by analyzing how to link projects to subnational and national implementation
• Develop nationally appropriate REDD+ safeguards and indicators to measure impacts and benefits of REDD+ implementation
• Develop National REDD+ project guidelines and approve funding for demonstration sites
• Support existing REDD+ pilot project activities

Key Results

Cambodia UN-REDD National Programme expects to produce the following outcomes:

• Effective National Management of the REDD+ Readiness process and stakeholder engagement in accordance with the Roadmap principles
• Development of the National REDD+ Strategy and Implementation Framework
• Improved capacity to manage REDD+ at subnational levels
• Design of a Monitoring System and capacity for implementation.

Background

Cambodia has one of the highest levels of forest cover in Southeast Asia, with approximately 10.7 million hectares of forest in 2006 or 59% of Cambodia’s land area. Yet, because of large-scale agro-industrial development, and a lack of effective implementation of existing laws and policies for forest land and forest resource management, deforestation in Cambodia has been rapidly proceeded. The Royal Government of Cambodia established the principle forest management strategies in 2010, the new National Forest Programme, so as to set out a plan for long-term management of Cambodia’s forestry estate.