Managing forest resources for sustainable development

Forests are home to some of the world's poorest people. Forests also provide environmental services important to the agriculture sector such as hydrological regulation and pollination. Forests and trees on farms are an important source of fodder and enhance soil fertility. Forested watersheds, wetlands and mangrove ecosystems support the freshwater and coastal fisheries on which many communities depend. Worldwide, the demand for forest products is expected to continue to grow. Forests also provide important global public goods, such as biodiversity and carbon sequestration. Appropriate policy and institutional responses are required to manage forests in a sustainable manner by balancing competing interests, addressing underlying failures in forest governance and clarifying tenure issues. The World Bank Group's response has been most recently expressed in its 2002 Forest Strategy, sustaining forests - a development strategy, which identifies three pillars/objectives for its involvement in the sector: harnessing the potential of forests to reduce poverty; integrating forests in sustainable economic development; and protecting vital local and global environmental services and values.

Download here...