Forestry management for sustainable development

The three immediate causes of deforestation are: clearing the forest land for farming, demand for firewood and fodder, and excessive commercial logging. Fire - intentional and natural - can also contribute to deforestation. These factors are aggravated by population growth and infrastructural and industrial development. All of these are expected to continue through this century. Asian forests are unique in their proximity to centres of rapid economic and population growth, which makes them particularly vulnerable to excessive exploitation. Behind the crisis in Asian forestry (i.e. the forests, people, and institutions) lie three major failures. These failures are associated with economic policy, institutional change, and technological improvement. These three sets of issues were the focus of the regional seminar on 'Forestry management for sustainable development' held 27 January - 1 February, 1992, in Genting Highlands, Malaysia. This report is based in part on the papers prepared for, and the discussions that took place at that seminar, which was organized by the Economic Development Institute of the World Bank and the Forest Research Institute Malaysia. The 5 chapters are of the report are: (1) Introduction and overview; (2) The policy environment: forest policy issues in Southeast Asia; (3) The institutional environment: redefining the roles of forests; (4) The technological environment: technological issues limiting the successful management of natural tropical forests; and (5) Conclusions and recommendations. A list of participants is included.