6 July 2007
Civil society remains concerned that the criteria for cancellation in the legal review may not be strictly applied, and that many dubious titles could be confirmed in the process.
Reuters reports that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has pledged to cancel logging contracts signed during the civil war and by the transitional government in contravention of a nationwide moratorium on the allocation of forest titles.
In 2005, the DRC government agreed to carry out a World Bank-sponsored legal review of existing logging titles, to convert those that meet certain criteria into forest concessions under the new forest code. Last year, 156 titles were submitted for consideration. The review is being conducted by the Congolese government, with technical assistance from an “independent observer” team comprised of a Belgian firm, Agreco, and the World Resources Institute (WRI), an environmental think-tank based in Washington DC.
Local civil society groups and international allies, such as Greenpeace, have long demanded the cancellation of illegally allocated contracts, and have been critical of the World Bank's interventions in the forestry sector, arguing that Bank-backed reforms have facilitated private sector investment, often at the expense of local communities. Greenpeace remains concerned that the criteria for cancellation in the legal review may not be strictly applied, and that many dubious titles could be confirmed in the process. Furthermore, they are worried that real problems will arise following the conclusion of the review.
Many companies are expected to appeal decisions to cancel their titles, and there is no sign that the government is prepared to handle these legal challenges. In addition, few if any steps have been taken to strengthen the government’s enforcement power or to prevent social conflicts from arising when community investments promised by companies operating illegally are left unfulfilled.
Greenpeace and its allies continue to demand that the moratorium on new logging titles must be maintained and effectively enforced even after the review process is concluded, in order to develop a proper land use plan with the participation of local communities. Forest dependent communities have thus far been excluded from decision making, and groups call upon the World Bank to actively promote alternatives to industrial logging that directly benefit the poor.
Congo's environment minister reportedly told Reuters that "Congo is ready to cancel more than half its timber contracts," but that it is soliciting increased international aid as an incentive to desist from further degradation of the country's rainforests, the world's largest after the Amazon.
The DRC is among the five pilot areas under consideration for the Bank’s new Forest Carbon Partnership Fund, an avoided deforestation financing scheme expected to be launched in December of this year at the COP summit on climate change in Bali.
Resources
- Congo logging contracts under review by Mary Childs, Reuters, June 14, 2007 (Reuters website)
- Congo to cancel logging deals to protect forests by Joe Bavier, Reuters, June 22, 2007 (Reuters website)
- Greenpeace releases new report critical of World Bank's role in DRC's forest sector, Bank Information Center, April 11, 2007 (BIC website)
- Bank to pilot carbon fund for avoided deforestation, Bank Information Center, June 14, 2007 (BIC website)