Many countries have decided to strengthen their national programmes or strategies for forest genetic resources, as well as related assessment and documentation efforts, in response to the Global Plan of Action on Forest Genetic Resources”, says Jarkko Koskela, FAO’s Forestry Officer on Forest Genetic Resources & Biodiversity. While the human and financial resources for improving the conservation and management of forest genetic resources remain a challenge, there are also actions which require relatively small additional investments, he says.
The Global Plan of Action For Forest Genetic Resources (GPA-FGR) is a strategic framework for the conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources of trees and other woody plants. It was based on the findings of the first-ever State of the World’s Forest Genetic Resources report, published by United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in June 2014.
We spoke to Jarkko Koskela, Forestry Officer (Forest Genetic Resources & Biodiversity) at FAO’s Headquarters in Rome, Italy, to hear what countries across the world are doing to implement the Global Plan of Action and what role the regional forest genetic resources networks, including APFORGEN, play in the process.
Q: What is the status of the Global Plan of Action on Forest Genetic Resources (GPA-FGR)? What are some of the current plans for its implementation?
JK: Several activities have been launched to implement the GPA-FGR at the national, regional and international levels, and many more are being developed around the world. Many countries have decided to strengthen their national programmes or strategies for forest genetic resources, as well as related assessment and documentation efforts, for example. The human and financial resources for improving the conservation and management of forest genetic resources remain a challenge but there are also actions which require relatively small additional investments. Furthermore, numerous ongoing efforts contribute directly to the implementation of the GPA-FGR; the regional networks are a good example of such efforts. FAO is focusing on the international-level strategic priorities of the GPA-FGR, i.e. reinforcing information systems, promoting awareness on the importance of forest genetic resources and strengthening efforts to mobilize the necessary financial resources.
The implementation of the GPA-FGR is a long-term process and many strategic priorities require a step-by-step approach. For example, it is impossible to develop a regional conservation strategy for forest genetic resources if you have no idea what is already conserved (both in situ and ex situ) and what is not. As genetic resources are crucial for sustainable forest management, any project aiming at improving forest management or restoring degraded forests can potentially contribute to the implementation of the GPA by incorporating genetic considerations into the planned activities.
It is good to keep in mind that the GPA-FGR is a rolling document that will be updated by the FAO Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA) in the future as countries and other players make progress in implementing it. The CGRFA has already agreed to review the progress made by 2019 and its work plan also includes the development of the second State of the World’s Forest Genetic Resources report by 2023. These two milestones will provide the CGRFA with the necessary up-to-date information for revising the GPA-FGR, if needed and if recommended by the Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Forest Genetic Resources (ITWG-FGR).
A more detailed update to the implementation of the GPA-FGR will be presented to all FAO Regional Forestry Commissions that will meet between November 2015 and February 2016. This also provides an opportunity for the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission to discuss the GPA-FGR at its 26th Session that will be held in the Philippines on 22-26 February 2016 and make recommendations to the FAO Committee on Forestry that will meet in Rome on 18-22 July 2016.
Q; APFORGEN has developed a strategy for supporting the implementation of the GPA-FGR in the Asia Pacific region. What are some recommendations you have on how APFORGEN can best contribute to implementing the Global Plan of Action?
JK: The regional networks on forest genetic resources, such as APFORGEN, play an important role in the implementation of the GPA-FGR. As the GPA-FGR identified a total of 27 strategic priorities [1] it is obvious that their relative priority and actions needed differ significantly between different countries and regions. Therefore, it is necessary that countries analyze these priorities both individually and together with their neighbouring countries in a regional context and then identify, as a first step, the most urgent and relevant priorities for further action. Last year, APFORGEN and its member countries did exactly this when they developed the regional strategy.
It is very positive that APFORGEN has taken a pro-active role in supporting the implementation of the GPA-FGR in the Asia Pacific region. From my point of view, APFORGEN, as well as the Asia Pacific Association of the Forestry Research Institutions (APAFRI) and Bioversity International, are key partners contributing to the implementation of the GPA-FGR in the region.
Although the main purpose of APFORGEN is to foster regional collaboration on forest genetic resources, its activities also benefit individual countries in their efforts to improve conservation and management of forest genetic resources. Many national and regional-level priorities are also closely inter-linked, such as developing national and regional conservation strategies. Therefore, APFORGEN should not only focus on the regional-level priorities but also analyze how regional collaboration could facilitate the implementation of national-level priorities.
Policymakers in different countries often ask what are the benefits of networking and regional collaboration. The implementation of the GPA-FGR offers an excellent opportunity to demonstrate to the policymakers how regional collaboration benefits the national efforts. Once they discover this, they are more likely to consider investing financial or in-kind contributions to APFORGEN’s work. Furthermore, I hope that policymakers in those countries which are not yet members of APFORGEN will also discover the win-win situation and consider joining APFORGEN.
Q: Many APFORGEN members know you from the time when you worked in Southeast Asia and were one of the key organizers of APFORGEN in early 2000s. Can you tell us about your current role at the FAO Headquarters in Rome, and what kind of projects and initiatives you are working on?
JK: My work as Forestry Officer (Forest Genetic Resources & Biodiversity) at FAO focuses on promoting the conservation and use of forest genetic resources as part of sustainable forest management and advising to the FAO member countries in this area. I also serve as Secretary of the Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Forest Genetic Resources (ITWG-FGR) which was established in 2009 by the CGRFA. Furthermore, I provide technical backstopping to field projects and technical support to the regional networks on forest genetic resources, including APFORGEN. In addition, I participate in the FAO inter-departmental activities on biodiversity, biotechnology and biosafety, and in making FAO’s contributions to international agreements in these areas.
[1] The 27 Strategic Priorities are grouped into four areas: (1) improving the availability of, and access to, information on FGR, (2) conservation of FGR (in situ and ex situ), (3) sustainable use, development and management of FGR, and (4) policies, institutions and capacity-building.
APFORGEN Secretariat would like to thank Jarkko for his time in sharing with us his thoughts on the implementation of the Global Plan of Action and the role of regional forest genetic resources networks play in the process.
