lessons of experience from wwf’s community based forest enterprises project (cbfe)

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Main points to be covered

• Overview of the project

• Objectives and expected results

• Main components

• Funding and timing

• Key issues

• Accomplishments

• The International Meeting in Bolivia

• Future prospects

Lessons of Experience from WWF’s Community-based Forest Enterprises

Project (CBFE)

Juan Sève

Montpellier 26 March 2010

Taking stock of smallholder and community forestry: Where do we go

from here?


Main points to be covered

• Introductory remarks

• The CBFE project – background and present status

• Factors of success – basic

• Factors of success – specific

• Where do we go from here? – Perspective on the enterprise approach


Introductory remarks

• Community forestry efforts have been around for four decades or more

• Recent estimates: 22% of forests in developing countries under control of communities

• Success stories are scarce… plenty of reasons- Design problems- Lack of economic consideration- Technical assistance not well adapted- Short funding periods


The CBFE project – background and present status

• Funded by the European Commission and implemented by WWF• Began in mid-2007; runs through late 2010• Supports over 50 community forest enterprises (CFEs) in 4

countries: Bolivia; Cameroon; Panama; Papua New Guinea; over 90 communities; 400,000 ha

• Specific objective: Improved capacity of CFEs to access and manage forests for income, employment and investments

• Double perspective: forest conservation & business management

• Field-based approach

• Trying to pursue work beyond completion date… enough time for CFEs to operate on their own; concentrate on consolidation with more focus on business skills, marketing and policy change


Key results

• Overall: launching over 50 CFEs, legal establishment, forest management plans, social development plans, technical skills, business and organizational skills, policy work, wood products being sold by CFEs in all project operations.

• Bolivia:- One community group may operate on its own within a year- Indigenous enterprise providing technical services to forest

communities- Automated wood tracking system is being implemented- FSC certification procedures have started- Communities participating in legislative processes


Key results (cont.)• Cameroon:

- Analysis of the feasibility of wood processing- Report on factors affecting profitability of CFEs- Overhaul of regulatory procedures on community forests- facilitating the purchase of small processing units

• Panama:- Multi-village CFE established through participatory processes- Long-term contract for certified wood signed with European buyer- FSC certification procedures are underway- Strong partnership between WWF and Indigenous Local Authority

• PNG:- CFEs operate under an FSC group certificate; stepwise approach- Long-term purchasing agreement for certified wood- Credit facilitated for acquisition of small processing units


Factors of success - basic

• Enabling framework of rights and obligations (including tenure rights and ownership of proceeds), which will allow for large areas of land to remain committed to long-term forest production

• Access to competitive and open markets for products and inputs (including capital) that provide opportunities for gainful economic exchanges

• A consistent, stable and predictable framework of public policies (macroeconomic, fiscal, tenure, administrative, land use, sector…), keeping future uncertainties at acceptable levels

• Law enforcement to ensure that the basic rights and obligations are respected throughout society


Factors of success – specific• Not generic, like the basic ones, but linked to circumstances and

conditions surrounding actual operations• Gathered from lessons of experience of the CBFE project• Technical assistance:

- Most important in initial stages…major transformation toward markets- Many new skills to be acquired- Tailored to specific needs driven by new production systems- Competency and communication capabilities of TA teams- Time frame

• Training:- Always linked to technical assistance… same person in charge is best- Focused on competencies to be developed and targeted individuals- Technical skills acquired faster than business skills… both essential- Conduct training in the field; train local trainers early


Factors of success – specific (cont.)• Administrative requirements:

- Vary widely from one country to another… can be extreme- Long time for approval of key documents in Cameroon and Panama- Dialogue with authorities to simplify formalities… improved policies

• Forest management planning:- Special case of administrative requirement… required everywhere- Organization of production forest in space and time… often not fulfilled- More of an administrative formality than a sustainable management tool- Should become regulatory instrument; need more flexibility and rigor

• Financing:- Hard to run a business without it; virtually unavailable except in PNG- Aggressively pursuing options in other countries

• Local powers:- Some CFEs in located Indigenous areas with formal local government- Must conduct policy dialogue with public powers in behalf of CFEs- Should apply own regulatory and policy powers in their territories


Where do we go from

here?


Where do we go from here? – Perspective on the enterprise approach

• Enterprise approach brings together efficient operations, improved community welfare, and conservation of tropical forest while utilized

• Factors of success alone are not sufficient; internal entrepreneurial perspective is needed as well to have a sustainable business:- Provide employment, but can’t employ everybody

- Retain part of profits to maintain the financial health of the business

- Simple but effective accounting and business management systems- Business plans with reasonable projections of volumes, costs,

earnings- Learn handling of credit- Consider options for associating several CFEs for marketing flexibility


…and maybe we’ll end up with a sustainable business


The moral of the story• You don’t fight poverty without creating wealth

• You don’t create wealth without commerce

• You don’t have commerce without enterprises

• Prosperous enterprises require favorable institutions, and knowledge of forest management & business disciplines

• Communities that view the forest as a welfare-generating asset participate in its conservation


THANK YOU!

lessons of experience from wwf’s community based forest enterprises project (cbfe)

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