Only a radical change in forest policy can guarantee attainment of the Millennium Development Goals
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| Only a radical change in forest policy can guarantee attainment of the Millennium Development Goals
UN Forest Foibles*** A regular Global Forest Coalition Newsletter on UNFF5 Issue 4, 26 May 2005 Issue no. 9: May 2003 It has to be acknowledged that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) aptly address most of the needs of the majority of the world’s poor. While it is refreshing that the governments belatedly agreed on the targets set, we need to bear in mind that the majority of the world’s population was not actively involved in the design process. Particularly absent were those targeted by the goals. Thus, to make the implementation of the MDGs sustainable, we would be required to engage in low cost mass awareness-raising and design methodologies that guarantee the participation of the poor. This would avoid the situation where they would be considered as recipients of development rather than people participating in their development process. The fact that deforestation and forest degradation have continued at unacceptable levels and, at the same time, registered dramatic increases in poverty levels of local communities and Indigenous Peoples is in itself an indictment on the governments who claim to be the caretakers for the people. Thus, for the forest to contribute to the targets of the MDGs, there needs to be a dramatic and drastic change in policy direction. As the current approach is market oriented we call for socially oriented approaches to forest management. It is common to describe all people of interest in the forest as “stakeholders”, this is misleading. In reality, there are two interest groups of the forests, (1) those who exploit it for profits, and (2) those who depend on forests for their livelihoods. The former comprises the private sector and the governments, unfortunately, while the later comprises Indigenous Peoples and local communities, also unfortunately. While governments and the private sector value the forests in terms of cash flows and thus, engage in logging, commercial agriculture, including huge tree plantations and mining, IPs and local communities depend on forests for the very goals the MDGs had identified. Unless this scenario changes, the attainment of the MDGs would be a mirage. The forest community should see the MDGs as a rear opportunity to make up for the past negligence and go to the rescue of the poor and conserve forests. 
FIRST DAY OF THE HIGH-LEVEL SEGMENT After so many days of intense excitement (remembers the countless hours of discussion on the chair’s text?), many could not endure more of the same! Ministers and others speakers undoubtedly captivated the audience to the point of exhaustion. And the Lifetime Bulldozer Award goes to....The World Bank Group Once again, you might not consider us very original, but they are not original either. For decades we have denounced the World Bank as a leading force behind global deforestation. It is broadly acknowledged that they have been responsible for decades of forest destruction through support to projects like roads, dams, large-scale logging and agricultural expansion, and policies triggering underlying causes of forest loss like debt, structural adjustment, and corporate-driven trade liberalization. In fact, the World Bank is one of the best examples of the destructive power of funds and financial resources. And every time you think it cannot get worse, you are proven wrong, as a recently published joint review of eight NGOs of the latest WB forest policy, which was adopted in 2002, demonstrates. Directory: oldsite oldsite -> Contents Foreword Executive Summary How to respond The proposals and consultation questions What will happen next? The Consultation Criteria annex a: List of Consultees Foreword oldsite -> Categories appearing in this document oldsite -> The Vázquez Collection of Historical String Instruments The Violin Family oldsite -> Owner’s manual oldsite -> Guide to Filling Empty Cupboards in Your Region oldsite -> Lax to parker boiler co. Factory oldsite -> International laser class association North american region oldsite -> Vickers barrow motor club 2008 yearbook windscreen stickers and leather key rings oldsite -> 1932 Chassis issued 10. 11. 32. Car despatched ex-works to Lillie Hall, Fulham on 21. 12. 32 as an “enclosed drive” and long-wheel-base, signifying a saloon body to be fitted. The designated body-builder was Georges Gangloff Download 1.04 Mb. Share with your friends:
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