ABSTRACT
Since the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized nations launched an action programme on forests in 1998, the issue of illegal logging and the role of timber consumers in world markets in ensuring that traded timber comes from sustainable sources have been attracting increasing attention. Several processes and initiatives were launched at global, regional and sub-regional levels to foster international dialogue and cooperation to fight illegal logging and illegal timber trade, and to improve governance in the forest sector. These processes and initiatives include the World Bank-supported Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (FLEG) processes and the European Union’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) process. In Africa, cooperation in promoting forest law enforcement and governance, which is the focus of this overview, has developed as a result of these processes and initiatives. This cooperation led to the initiation of the Africa Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (AFLEG) process in 2003, and to a dynamic in which the public sector, civil society and the private sector are cooperating to enhance forest law enforcement and forest governance. This chapter presents a summary of the progress made so far in this cooperation as well as the challenges, at regional level and in bilateral programmes.
