Advice on the review of implementation of the expanded programme of work
on forest biological diversity
The Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice
1. Welcomes the second and third meeting reports of the Ad Hoc Technical
Expert Group on Review of Implementation of the Programme of Work on Forest
Biological Diversity (UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/11/INF/2 and UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/11/INF/3);
2. Expresses its appreciation to the Governments of France and Germany
for their financial support for the first and third meeting, respectively, and
to the European Community for its financial support for the second meeting;
other Governments and organizations for the participation of their
representatives; and to the Co-Chairs and members of the Expert Group for their
contributions;
3. Recommends that the Conference of the Parties at its eighth
meeting:
(a) Requests the Executive Secretary to carry out an indepth review of the
expanded programme of work following the proposed review process as delineated
in the annex to the present recommendation, in collaboration with members of
the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group on Review of Implementation of the Programme
of Work on Forest Biological Diversity, especially with respect to providing
information on the impediments and technical information on successes, and also
taking into account relevant recommendations from the Working Group on Review
of Implementation of the Convention;
(b) Encourages Parties and other relevant stakeholders to access existing
information on forest related reporting when preparing the third and fourth
national report, for example, through the Joint Information Framework for
Forest-Related Reporting web site of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests
and other non-web-based means ;
(c) Encourages the Task Force on Streamlining Forest-related Reporting of the
Collaborative Partnership on Forests to continue its work towards reducing
reporting burden and minimizing duplication of reporting requests, including
options for developing joint forest-related information requests at future
stages, such as reporting on global outcome-oriented forest targets;
Annex
PROPOSAL ON THE REVIEW OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EXPANDED PROGRAMME OF WORK ON
FOREST BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
A. Sources of information
1. Relevant sources of information that will contribute to the review of
implementation of the expanded programme of work on forest biological diversity
are listed as follows:
(a) The primary source information is to be extracted from the
third national report submitted by Parties to the Convention in 2005;[5]/
(b) Other forest-related information in the form of national reports previously
submitted to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations, the International Tropical Timber Agreement
(but only for countries members of the International Tropical Timber
Organization (ITTO)), the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), the United
Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and the United Nations
Framework on Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), that can be accessed at the
Collaborative Partnership on Forest's Joint Information Framework for
Forest-Related Reporting web site and regional criteria and indicators
processes;[6]/
(c) Information contained in voluntary thematic reports produced, in the
framework of the Convention, on forest biological diversity (thematic report on
forest ecosystems submitted in 2001,[7]/
voluntary report on progress of implementation of the expanded programme of
work in 2003.[8]/);
(d) "Country profiles" produced by the Commission for Sustainable Development as
well as national reports;
(e) Relevant information on progress made in National Biodiversity Strategies
and Action Plans and National Forest Programmes;
(f) Questionnaires to international organizations to gauge implementation at the
international level.[9]/
(g) Review of implementation by non-governmental organizations dealing with
indigenous communities (e.g., Global Forest Coalition review of the
forest-related clauses in the Convention;[10]/
Forest People's Programme on indigenous people's experiences of biodiversity
conservation activities funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF);[11]/
reports to the United Nations Forum on Forests;[12]/
summary Report of the Expert Meeting on Traditional Forest-Related Knowledge
and the Implementation of Related International Commitments[13]/
); and
(h) International/global forest assessments, including the FAO Forest Resources
Assessment and Yearbook of Forest Products, the FAO State of the
World's Forests reports, the FAO regional outlook studies, the FAO national
forest programme updates, the ITTO annual review and assessment of the world
timber situation,[14]/ the ITTO
upcoming review on the status of sustainable forest management, review by the
United Nations Forum on Forests of progress made on the proposals for action
put forward by the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests (IPF)/Intergovernmental
Forum on Forests (IFF),[15]/
assessment reports under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC)/Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, the Global Biodiversity Outlook, the 2003
report on the state of Europe's forests of the Ministerial Conference on the
Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE), and the upcoming MCPFE report on
sustainable forest management in Europe.
B. Technical components of the review
2. The review of implementation of the expanded programme of work on forest
biological diversity shall carry out, whenever feasible and relevant, the
following activities as they relate to the section on forest biodiversity
within the third national report to the Convention, and other relevant sources
as mentioned in paragraph 5 of the note by the Executive Secretary on advice on
the review of the expanded programme of work on forest biological diversity
(UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/11/15), taking into account annex 3 to the recommendation 1/8
of the Working Group on Review of Implementation of the Convention;
3. A background report will be prepared by the Executive Secretary in
collaboration with the forest AHTEG on status and trends in forest biological
diversity and the expanded programme of work on forest biodiversity. The report
will cover:
(a) Analysis and presentation of the information in a regional context,
including maps;
(b) Analysis and synthesis of the information submitted in written form in the
third national report (as opposed to only reporting frequency of compliance for
a given question), including information arising from the implementation of
activities contained in paragraph 19 of decision VI/22;
(c) Assessment of the adequacy of the expanded programme of work on forest
biological diversity in addressing national priorities;
(d) Identification of information gaps by clustering those questions with poor
responses, including the possibility of communicating back to Parties on the
reason why a particular question remained unanswered;
(e) Consideration of options for analysing, synthesizing, presenting, and
publishing the information submitted, including through the clearing house
mechanism, in order to provide feedback to Parties and enhance the value and
ownership of the reported information;
(f) Analysis of the information by identifying, developing, and/or elaborating
on (but not limited to):
(i) Major global and regional benefits and problems in implementing the
programme of work;
(ii) Most implemented goals and/or objectives;
(iii) Least implemented goals and/or objectives;
(iv) Not implemented goals and/or objectives;
(v) Conclusions on a regional basis;
(vi) Conclusions on a global basis;
(vii) Suggestions for improvement to the forest work programme and ways forward;
(viii) Lessons learned and best practices;
(ix) Identification of barriers to implementation in the context of priorities
for capacitybuilding.
(g) An overall assessment on:
(i) If and how the forest work programme has been a helpful tool in reducing the
loss of forest biodiversity;
(ii) How the forest work programme has been helpful in addressing the three
objectives of the Convention.
4. There are a number of technical limitations to the review of the information
contained in the forest biodiversity section of the third national report.
These limitations need to be noted in the introduction to the review and taken
into account when conducting this review. Some specific examples of limitations
to the information include:
(a) The inability to assess status and trends directly, because most of the
questions were not designed for this purpose;
(b) Different interpretations and hence different answers to questions;
(c) Often the absence of baseline data.
5. Assessment and identification of successes, challenges, and obstacles to
implementation, as well and on the effects of the types of scientific and
technical measures taken and tools used in implementing the expanded programme
of work on forest biological diversity will be drawn from the third national
reports and other sources of relevant information as appropriate;
6. Taking into account limitations identified in paragraph 4 above the review
will address status and trends in forest biological diversity, effectiveness
and constraints of the expanded programme of work on forest biological
diversity and matters requiring further consideration arising from paragraph 19
of decision VI/22. The review will provide recommendations on subject matters
associated with the work programme and possible ways and means to develop,
design and/or refine the future programme of work on forest biological
diversity.
[5]/ At its first meeting, in
2003, the Group developed a refined questionnaire on forest biological
diversity within the format of the third national report, structured around the
12 goals and 27 objectives of the expanded forest work programme, and later
adopted by the Conference of the Parties in its decision VII/25.
[6]/
www.fao.org/forestry/site/26880/en.
[7]/ Available at
http://www.biodiv.org/world/reports.aspx?type=for
[8]/ Available at
http://www.biodiv.org/world/reports.aspx?type=vfe
[9]/ To this end, the Group
developed, in its first meeting in 2003, a questionnaire directed at
International organizations, including all members of the Collaborative
Partnership on Forests. The questionnaire format was adopted at the seventh
meeting of the Conference of the Parties and sent in 2004.
[10]/ See "Status of
implementation of Forest-related Clauses in the CBD". March 2002.
FERN-Global Forest Coalition.
[11]/ Griffiths, T. 2005.
Indigenous Peoples and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Forest Peoples
Programme.
[12]/ Fifth session of the
United Nations Forum on Forests. report on traditional forest related knowledge
and the implementation of related international commitments: International
Alliance of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of the Tropical Forests, 6-10
December 2004, San Jose, Costa Rica (E/CN.18/2005/16)
[13]/ Costa Rica, 2004;
International Alliance of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of the Tropical Forests
[14]/
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/400/E-Annual%20Review%202004.pdf
[15]/ Fifth session of the
United Nations Forum on Forests. Report of the Secretary-General on the review
of the effectiveness of the international arrangement on forest
(E/CN.18/2005/6).
