International schemes to protect forests are unlikely to succeed until they ensure that local civil society and communities are at the heart of forest monitoring, according to a new report published by twelve NGOs today.
Exploring credibility gaps in Voluntary Partnership Agreements: A review of independent forest monitoring initiatives and lessons to learn identifies several ways in which civil society and community participation could improve the effectiveness and reliability of these landmark agreements between the European Union and timber-producing developing countries. The deals set out to reduce the consumption in Europe of illegally harvested timber by improving forest laws, and their implementation, in tropical forests.
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