Highlights and images for 7 May 2018

Summary

The thirteenth session of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF13) opened on Monday, 7 May 2018, at UN Headquarters in New York. In the morning, delegates addressed a number of organizational matters, including an amendment to the agenda to add a sub-item to discuss how the reform of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) may affect the UNFF Secretariat.

The Forum heard opening statements from Marie Chatardová, President, UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General, Economic and Social Affairs, and UNFF Director Manoel Sobral Filho. This was followed by discussion on the implementation of the UN Strategic Plan for Forests 2017-2030 (UNSPF), starting with announcements of voluntary national contributions (VNCs) to the UNSPF from among others, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Madagascar, Nepal, New Zealand, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Paraguay, Peru, the Philippines, Slovakia, Turkey and Ukraine. Delegates then engaged in more general policy discussion on UNSPF implementation.

During lunch, the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), and the governments of Germany and Switzerland co-hosted a side event on "Sustainable Forest Management and Forest Restoration in the Caucasus and Central Asia."

In the afternoon, a Ministerial Roundtable was held on forest-based solutions for accelerating achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a keynote provided by Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Two panels consisting of ministers or vice ministers and high-level representatives of member organizations of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), Major Groups and other stakeholders made short presentations, followed by interactive discussions.

For details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin.

IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, will provide daily digital coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from UNFF-13.

Photos by IISD/ENB | Ángeles Estrada
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L-R: Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs (DESA); Marie Chatardová, President, UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC); Muhammad Shahrul Ikram Yaakob, UNFF13 chair; Moncef Khane, UNFF Secretary; and Manoel Sobral Filho, UNFF Director

Hossein Moeini-Meybodi, UNFF Secretariat

Manoel Sobral Filho, UNFF Director

Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General for DESA

Sibylle Vermont, Switzerland

Marie Chatardová, President, ECOSOC

Sheyam Elgarf, Egypt for G-77/China

Moncef Khane, UNFF Secretary

Jessica Coronel, Ecuador

Cynthia Silva, Bolivia

John Leigh, Peru

L-R: Geraldine Byrne Nason, Chair, UN Commission on the Status of Women; Muhammad Shahrul Ikram Yaakob, UNFF13 Chair; and Moncef Khane, UNFF Secretary

Nasser Jaghoub, Palestine

Geraldine Byrne Nason, Chair, UN Commission on the Status of Women

Jessica Carvajal, Colombia

Jorge Mario Rodríguez-Zúñiga, Costa Rica

Ministerial Roundtable on Forest-based Solutions for Accelerating Achievement of the SDGs

L-R: Peng Youdong, Deputy Administrator, State Forestry and Grassland Administration, China; Nicolau dos Santos, Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Livestock, Guinea-Bissau; Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chairperson, Global Environment Facility (GEF), Muhammad Shahrul Ikram Yaakob, UNFF13 Chair; and Moncef Khane, UNFF Secretary; and Maria Patek, Federal Ministry for Sustainability and Tourism, Austria