Forests are more than collections of trees

More than a billion people around the world rely extensively on forests for their livelihoods and 60 million members of indigenous communities are completely dependent on forests for their survival. Around one billion men, women and children are treated with medications derived exclusively from medicinal plants in forests. Forestry and wood processing employs around 60 million people. Up to 25% or 33 million square kilometres of the earth’s land surface is still covered by forest.

But…

In the past 15 years between 14 and 17 million hectares of forest have disappeared. In certain tropical regions up to 4% a year of the total forest area has been destroyed.
Each year, unsuitable exploitation of forests and savannah accounts for loss of land which constitutes 10% of the total value which could be produced on this land using sustainable agricultural methods.
Every 10 years the cultivation of land accounts for the loss of 2-5% of the overall variety of species. This has irreversible effects on the stability of the ecosystem and the quality of life of humans.
The burning of forests is responsible for 20-30% of the total emissions of greenhouse gases which are the cause of global climate change.
The economic and social value of forests is totally underestimated. Wood products are sold below their real value and the ecological services rendered by forests such as water storage, erosion control, preservation of species variety and climate stabilization are not recognized as economically important.

SDC Activities in the Domain of Forestry

Among the natural resources, the forest plays a crucial role. While representing in itself a multifunctional ecosystem characteristic of rural countryside, it not only makes a vital contribution to the preservation of the climate, to the protection against natural hazards, to tourism, etc., but also – in its function as element of the rural production system - plays a huge role in the reduction of poverty. The forest operates as a veritable environmental habitat in providing mankind with products such as wood for heat and for housing, drinking water, feeding grounds for wildlife, fruits, game, humus, and medicinal plants, to name only a few. For populations living in the countries of the South and East, the forest is vested with utmost importance, especially for the poorest segments of the population. Over 1.6 billion individuals throughout the world (FAO, 2001) living in extreme poverty heavily depend on the forest and on its resources to cover the basic needs of daily existence. For these people, the forest takes on a meaning equivalent to workplace, source of sustenance for man and beast, raw material for production and construction, source of energy, refuge for spiritual renewal, protection from natural disasters, and a capital reserve for the proverbial rainy day.

The SDC supports the ongoing international process aimed at making the sustainable use of forests subject to binding regulations. In this process, the already internationally recognized instrument known as the National Forest Programme is of paramount significance. It represents a political action programme targeted and calculated to sustainably regulating the economic, ecological, and social demands being placed on the forest. Switzerland (SAEFL and SDC) supports the formulation of such Forest Programmes while underscoring how essential it is that local and regional governments and communities be integrated into a participative process right from the very start.

With respect to internationally rooted programmes and studies, the SDC supports decentralized exploitation of natural resources and access to them by the local population.

For example:

Forest Programme (PROFOR) sponsored by the World Bank in partnership with various state development institutions:
The overall goal of PROFOR consists in enhancing forests' contribution to poverty reduction, sustainable development and protection of environmental values and services. One of the four main themes of PROFOR is to foster the decentralized use of forest and tree resources.
Research Project with CIFOR (Center for International Forestry Research in Indonesia):
The purpose of the project is to ensure that local capacity to plan and implement locally relevant and viable forest landscape management is strengthened. The project will improve livelihoods of the forest dependent poor and enhance sustainable management of forests.