You will find below the text of a new protocol that has been added to the Lome Convention, which is the aid and trade pact linking the 15 EU countries to the 70 ACP States (Africa, Caribbean and Pacific). Countries covered with tropical rainforests that are concerned by this new piece of international legislation include: Gabon, Cameroun, Zaire, Angola, Liberia, Ghana, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Central African Republic, Surinam, Guyana, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. The agreed text falls short of the expections from the ACP developing countries, which asked a budget of about 100 million US-$/year to finance sustainable forestry activities. No committment for new financial resources has been made by the EU. The impact of the agreement on forest management, valid up to year 2000, is consequently most uncertain. A comprehensive critical coverage of this lost opportunity of constructive forestry cooperation between the EU and ACP countries can be found in the June 95 issue of the magazine "Afrique Agriculture". The magazine also include an article I wrote, presenting the initial proposals that have been made as far as the content of the protocol is concerned. Do not hesitate to contact me if you want further information. Regards. Jean-Pierre Kiekens. (Environmental Strategies Europe & University of Brussels, Belgium) =========================================================== Protocol on Sustainable Management of Forest Resources 1. The Community and the ACP States acknowledge the importance and the need for the rational management of forest resources with a view to ensuring a long-term sustainable development of forests in ACP countries in conformity with the Rio Declaration of Principle on the Environment and Development including the non-legally binding Forest Principles, the UN framework agreement on climatic changes and the Conventions on Biodiversity and Desertification. 2. Special priority shall be given to actions which support and encourage the efforts of ACP countries and their organizations to preserve, re-establish and sustainably use their forestry resources, including the fight against desertification. 3. The Community and the ACP States will concentrate their efforts on actions promoting: a) Conservation of endangered tropical forests and their biodiversity and regeneration of the functions of tropical forests which have been damaged, bearing in mind the needs and interest of local populations in sustainable use of forest products, the different actors and factors causing deforestation, the need to ensure participation by local populations in the identification, planning and implementation of actions, the differences between countries and regions and measures to address them. b) Development of buffer zones to assist the conservation, regeneration and sustainable development of tropical forests, as a part of a broader land utilization plan. c) Sustainable management of forests destined for the production of timber and other products derived therefrom, ensuring that by the year 2000 and based on appropriate management plans, these products are derived from sustainable sources. Special priority will be given to community based and small scale forest operations. d) Supporting and developing locally adapted re-afforestation and forest management activities as well as restoring the fertility of degraded forest lands especially in the framework of national and regional campaigns against desertification. e) Support for institution building in the forestry sector with emphasis on capacity building to address the need for training schemes of local populations, forest managers and researchers, for legislation, for increased political and social support and institutional strengthening and for organizations and associations active in forestry operations. f) Development and implementation of action plans at local, national and regional level to improve the management, conservation and sustainable development of forests, taking into account the causes of deforestation inside and from outside the forest sector. g) Introduction of a strategic and adaptive research policy aimed at imparting knowledge and the planning capacity required for the conservation and sustainable management of forests and also for the implementation of research monitoring activities in the framework of projects and programmes. 4. Acknowledging the importance of timber and timber products for the economies of the ACP States, the Community and the ACP States will concentrate within the confines set out above on the following; a) Improving the timber trade and marketing from forests under sustainable development. b) Supporting the definition and the development of certification systems for timber produced from tropical forests bearing in mind sustainable forest management principles as part of envisaged internationally harmonized certification systems for all kinds of timber and timber products. c) Supporting measures to increase the share of tropical timber and timber products from sustainable sources within the overall production of this sector in the ACP' countries with a view to stimulating economic development and industrialization in these countries and increasing employment prospects and export earnings. d) Promoting and diversifying of international trade in tropical timber from resources rendered sustainable through the improvement of the structural characteristics of international markets taking account of prices which reflect the cost of sustainable management of forests and are at the same time remunerative and fair to both parties; e) Supporting the development of ACP national policies aimed at the sustainable utilization and preservation of tropical timber producing forests and their genetic resources as well as the maintenance of an ecological balance in the regions concerned within the context of the tropical timber trade; f) Promoting access to and transfer of technology as well as technical cooperation for attaining the objectives of sustainable development. 5. Acknowledging further the importance of tropical timber for the economies of the ACP countries with timber producing forests and the imperative need to put an end to desertification in many AC)' countries and bearing in mind the incremental cost' of achieving benefits associated with forest preservation and development, the Community will support the above activities. To this end the Community will in addition to the resources set aside for national indicative programmes, regional indicative programmes or all ACP activities and in accordance with the relevant provisions, use resources available under the Community budget for this purpose. Joint declaration: The contracting parties agree to cooperate in the implementation of the provisions of this Protocol to take into account internationally harmonized criteria and indicators on sustainable management of forests.
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