FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO)
The session hall during the opening day of COFO 23 and the 5th World Forest Week in Rome, Italy, on 18 July 2016. [FAO]The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations provides a forum for policy discussions on forestry through the Committee on Forestry (COFO) and its six Regional Forestry Commissions. The COFO is the highest FAO forestry statutory body. The biennial sessions of COFO are held at the FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy. They bring together heads of forest services and other senior government officials to identify emerging policy and technical issues, to seek solutions and to advise FAO and other related agencies on appropriate actions to undertake.
COFO membership is open to all UN Members upon written notification to the Director-General of their desire to become Members of the Committee and in- tention to participate in its work.
COFO membership is open to all UN Members upon written notification to the Director-General of their desire to become Members of the Committee and in- tention to participate in its work.
- Focal Office:
- Forestry Management Bureau (FMB)
- Date:
- First Session - May 1972
- Focal Persons:
- HON. ROY A. CIMATU
Secretary, DENR
Tel. No. (632) 926 3011, 920 4301, 929 6626 loc 2258
Technical Focal
FOR. NONITO M. TAMAYO
Director, DENR-FMB Tel. No. (632) 927 4788
Alternate
FOR. EDNA D. NUESTRO
OIC-Assistant Director, DENR-FMB
Tel. No. (632) 927 4784, Fax: (632) 928 2778 - Commitments:
- As a member of COFO, the Philippines needs to participate in its meetings and activities in order to achieve the organization's terms of reference, namely:
1. Conduct periodic review of international forestry problems and appraise these problems with a view to proposing concerted action to be undertaken by Member Nations and the Organization in the form of resolutions;
2. Review the work program of the Organization in the field of forestry and its implementation;
3. Advise the FAO Director-General on the future work program of the Organization in the field of forestry and on its implementation; and
4. Review specific matters relating to forestry referred to the Committee by the Council or the Director-General, or placed by the Committee on its agenda at the request of a Member Nation and make recommendations as may be appropriate. - Sources / Relevant Links:
- http://www.fao.org/about/meetings/cofo/en/
- Status / Updates:
- The 24th Session of the COFO (COFO 24) in 2018 examined the contribution of forests in achieving the UN SDGs and other internationally agreed goals; explored ways and means to accelerate progress, in particular, towards Goal 15; discussed actions for implementing the policy recommendations of the Committee on World Food Security regarding the contributions of forests to food security and nutrition; and reviewed opportunities and challenges for urban and peri-urban forestry.
COFO 24 also considered the implementation of FAO's climate change strategy and specific tasks related to forest resilience, health and forest fires and provided strategic direction for the future work of FAO in forestry. In this event, the report, State of the World's Forests 2018, was launched. - Latest Activities:
- - Committee on Forestry 24th Session (COFO 24) back-to-back with 6th World Forest Week, 16-20 July 2018 FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy - Delegates from Philippine Embassy in Rome headed by Philippine Ambassador Domingo Nolasco, Permanent Representative to FAO
- Steering Committee of the 24th Session of the Committee on Forestry (COFO), 6-7 July 2017; Rome, Italy - DENR Asst. Sec. Marcial C. Amaro Jr.
- 23rd Session of the Committee on Forestry and the 5th World Forest Week, 18-22 July 2016; Rome, Italy - DENR Asst. Sec. Marcial C. Amaro Jr.
- Steering Committee Meeting of the Committee on Forestry (COFO), 8 February 2016; Rome, Italy - DENR Asst. Sec. Marcial C. Amaro Jr. - Related Projects:
- Funded Project
Promoting Forest Landscape Restoration in Selected Southeast Asian Countries (TCP/RAS/3512)
The project aims to build capacity in Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) approaches to improve the flow of forest ecosystem services and enhance sustainable livelihoods for local communities and forest-dependent peoples through the restoration of environmental stability and productivity of degraded forests and forest landscapes. The project was implemented in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Indonesia and the Philippines from 1 November 2015 to 31 December 2017. Intensive meetings-discussions and field work activities, as well as trainings were conducted to prepare partners within the identified pilot area, the Carood Watershed in Bohol.
Project Status/Updates/Information
Site development in seven sites, one in each municipality (i.e., Alicia, Anda, Candijay, Guindulman, Mabini, Pilar and Ubay), that encompass the Carood Watershed in Bohol. The activities included assisted natural regeneration (ANR), firebreak establishment, graded trail maintenance, installation of water impoundments, agroforestry, soil and water conservation and advocacy to promote understanding and appreciation of FLR.
Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM) Training in the Philippines on 22-25 May 2018 by IUCN Staff - Representatives from the DENR-Forest Management Bureau (FMB), DENR-Regions 3, 7, 11 and CAR, partners from Carood Watershed Management Council, FAO Philippines and FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific participated in this event.
Regional Training and Final Workshop on 5-6 December 2018 in the Philippines - During the training, participants from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Indonesia and the Philippines shared experiences and lessons learned which may help enhance implementation of the FLR initiatives in their respective countries. - Next Steps:
- - Participate in the 25th Session of the Committee on Forestry and 7th World Forest Week 22-26 June 2020; FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy
- Focal Points are expected to perform their duties in accordance with the TOR of the COFO
- Request for Special Presidential Authority for the implementation of the COFO-funded project for the Philippines, "The Paris Agreement in action: upscaling forest and landscape restoration to achieve nationally determined contributions" (IKI Project Symbol: 18_III_094_Global_M_Large Scale FLR Initiatives)
This Page was updated on 12 December 2019 and will be updated on 10 March 2021