Executive Director calls on international processes to “turbo-charge” sustainable tropical forestry
15 May 2024
Executive Director Sheam Satkuru speaks at the UNFF19 High-level Segment and speak at the Dialogue with CPF Heads and UNFF partners. Photo: Soo Min Lee/ITTO
15 May 2024: International processes must collectively intensify efforts to accelerate investment in sustainable forest management (SFM) to unlock the immense potential of tropical forests as nature-based solutions to global challenges, ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru told the High-level segment of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests held at the 19th session of the UN Forum on Forests.
“Tropical forests can be the most effective and cost-effective nature-based solution if their potential and values are maximized through SFM and sustainable timber trade in order to avoid land-use change to more economically productive uses,” Ms Satkuru said.
“We need to turbo-charge global efforts and collaboration between the international processes to invest in SFM.”
Ms Satkuru called for innovative approaches to ensure equitable access to finance, which could involve public or private investment, or blended public and private investment. She said open access to specialist and technical knowledge was also needed, as well as the sharing of science, data and experiences in SFM.
“We suggest international donors and multilateral mechanisms further strengthen their collaboration to enable more effective/aligned allocation of funding and ensure equitable access for specialist forestry-related international organizations to this funding to support the different areas that require urgent attention in member states,” she said.
Ms Satkuru called for more awareness-raising and capacity building in SFM and associated legal and sustainable supply chains. She said ITTO would continue to support its members in these important areas by providing policy guidance and pilot field projects.
Ms Satkuru’s intervention took place at the UNFF19 High-level Segment and Dialogue with the CPF Heads and UNFF partners on “Achieving globally agreed goals on forests, climate change, and biodiversity” held on 9 May 2024, which addressed the question on how sustainably managed tropical forests help mitigate many global crises.