Project Period: January 2015-December 2016
Funding Source/Donor Organization: UK Department for International Development, DFID
Executing Agency: Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry
Contact: Zhao Rong: zhaorong6@vip.163.com
Brief Introduction:
China's Collective Forest Tenure reform has allocated approximately 180 million hectares, which accounts for about 60% of the total forest land area, to millions of farmers. This reform has resolved the issues of forest farmers' livelihoods and sustainable forest management at the source, while also addressing the needs and interests of special groups such as women, young people, ethnic minorities, indigenous peoples and so on. However, in some timber-producing countries, the problems of irrational and inadequate local regulations remain prominent. In countries with severe deforestation and forest degradation, public forest tenure still dominates.
Therefore, the program aims at strengthening experience and lessons sharing of Chinese forest tenure reform with other countries undergoing (or launching) similar reforms. Specifically, This Output contains two parts: (1) the development of needs-based materials and formats through a wrap-up and synthesis of experience and lessons learned; (2) feeding the materials into existing regional networks for information sharing and dissemination and initiating training activities for capacity building.
To achieve the established goals, the program has adopted a comprehensive approach. It systematically summarizes the experience of China's Collective Forest Tenure reform through desk investigation, field trips, and expert consultations. In addition, the program promotes experience sharing and capacity building through training workshops, seminars, on-site activities, and multi-stakeholder interactions, collaborating with national and regional policymakers, researchers, and international organizations.
The program has achieved significant results. Firstly, it has compiled a 200-page report that synthesizes the experience of China's Collective Forest Tenure reform, incorporating the wisdom of various stakeholders at both the central and local levels. Secondly, the program has compiled national and provincial policies related to the reform of Collective Forest Tenure in China. Additionally, the program has assessed the training needs of developing countries in forest tenure reform. Based on this assessment, materials, and reports for sharing the experience of China's Collective Forest Tenure reform have been developed. Lastly, the program has organized the Forest Tenure Reform Session in the IUFRO Regional Congress for Asia and Oceania 2016, attended the Asia Pacific Forestry week conference, and delivered a report on Forest Tenure Reform for experience & sharing. Furthermore, the program has collaborated with training institutions to hold training workshops for forestry ministers from Asia and Africa, forestry officials from the Asia-Pacific region, forestry officials from ITTO member countries, and forestry stakeholders from the Asia-Pacific region, training a total of 120 people and distributing 250 promotional materials.
The program has had a wide-ranging impact. It has not only disseminated China's experience in forest tenure reform to developing countries undergoing (or launching) similar reforms but also covered VPA countries and forestry overseas investment goal countries by Chinese companies. The program has contributed to raising awareness and enhancing the capacity of stakeholders in target developing countries, reducing the impacts of deforestation, forest degradation, and climate change. It has also influenced the behavior of Chinese overseas enterprises in forestry investment, promoting respect for local forest tenure and community rights. The program has also advocated for the respect and protection of the rights of women and ethnic minorities in target developing countries.
