IISD Reporting Services at UNFF-3, 26 May - June 6 2003, Geneva, Switzerland

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SUMMARY

United Nations Forum on Forests, Third Session
26 May - 6 June 2003 Geneva, Switzerland

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Highlights for

Wednesday, 4 June 2003

On Wednesday, delegates met in working groups to continue negotiating resolutions on forest health and productivity (FHP), economic aspects of forests (EAF), and maintaining forest cover to meet present and future needs (MFC), and convened in a contact group to discuss enhancing cooperation and policy and programme coordination. Delegates also met in two informal consultations: one on reporting format, the Trust Fund and MFC; and the other on enhanced cooperation and FHP. Above photo: Jan McAlpine (US) (left) in discussion with delegates from the G-77/CHINA.


WORKING GROUP I: FOREST HEALTH AND PRODUCTIVITY (FHP):

Conceição Ferreira (Portugal) chaired Working Group I, which discussed a draft resolution on forest health and productivity.

The G-77/CHINA insisted on a preambular reference to the need for official development assistance and reliable new and additional resources to implement actions; CANADA, the US and the EU, however, suggested keeping this language more general as the resolution on enhanced cooperation will deal with this in more detail.

The EU stressed the importance of site-adapted species selection in resilience to negative factors.

MEXICO supported identifying water cycles, as opposed to water regimes, as a factor affecting FHP, explaining it is a less politicized concept.

CANADA, highlighting the importance of prevention approaches to pest and disease control referred to sanitary and phytosanitary measures within the World Trade Organization. Left photo: Canada in conversation with delegates from Ecuador.

ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF FORESTS (EAF):

Gustavo Eduardo Ainchil (Argentina) chaired Working Group I, which considered a revised draft resolution on EAF.

The EU expressed concern with the conditionality between implementation and financing, capacity building and transfer of environmentally sound technologies.

On a paragraph regarding the valuation of forest goods and services, the G-77/CHINA proposed a reference on the importance of international assistance to developing countries.

SWITZERLAND, with AUSTRALIA, the EU, NORWAY and the US, emphasized the importance of including lessons learned as part of the UNFF work.

CONTACT GROUP ON ENHANCED COOPERATION:

Hossein Moeini Meybodi (Iran) chaired the contact group and presented a revised draft resolution on enhanced cooperation and policy and programme coordination.

G-77/CHINA suggested inserting a reference to "internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the MDGs"

Greece, on behalf of the EU, suggested stressing that sustainable forest management contributes to the realization of the goal of poverty alleviation.


WORKING GROUP II: MAINTAINING FOREST COVER

Peter Csóka (Hungary) chaired a working group discussing a draft resolution on maintaining forest cover. Right photo L-R: Jorge Illueca (UNFF) and Peter Csóka (Hungary)

The US and the G-77/CHINA suggested working in conformity with the other working groups by reducing the preambular text to one paragraph, focusing on country lessons learned.

On forest plantations, delegates discussed their environmental contributions and capacity to meet present and future needs. The EU (left), supported by NORWAY and JAPAN and opposed by AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND and the G-77/CHINA, recognized this contribution if plantations are responsibly established and sustainably managed.

On the US proposal to make reference to an Internet-based clearinghouse mechanism, the G-77/CHINA, supported by NEW ZEALAND, remarked that many developing countries lack Internet access, and suggested that information be made available in different ways.

The G-77/CHINA, with NEW ZEALAND, asked that reference to semi-natural forests be deleted, questioning the meaning of this term.

INFORMAL CONSULTATION: TRUST FUND

Delegates discussed in informal consultation a draft resolution on the UNFF trust fund to be forwarded to ECOSOC for adoption. One major country clarified that this resolution is needed to allow earmarking of funds for travel and daily subsistance. There was much debate about whether the fund should benefit only developing and least developed countries, or countries with economies in transition as well. No decision was taken on this.




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