OREANDA-NEWS. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have joined forces to promote viable forestry investment and innovation in the Russian Federation's Far East based on sustainable use of forest resources, FAO said in a statement received by Lesprom Network.

An Investment Roadmap, defining the pathway to sustainable investments in the region's forest industry, was presented on Wednesday at an Investment Forum in Vladivostok, Russian Federation. The event, convened by EBRD and FAO, attracted local authorities, federal government officials, private sector companies, industry experts, academia and non-governmental organizations.

Improving legal frameworks and the inventory of forest resources; developing modern forestry infrastructures and supporting services, in particular railway transportation networks; introducing modern logging, as well as harvesting and wood-processing technologies; providing adequate training at local level; clearly designating and protecting forest areas of high biodiversity value are among the key Roadmap recommendations.

“This huge forest domain borders the very large market of China and the rest of Asia,” said Jukka Tissari, FAO Forestry Officer. “It has been subject to varying levels of forest utilization, ranging from intensive use in the coastal region and around main transport corridors, to largely untapped forest frontiers with high biodiversity. Improving forestry information and sustainable forestry management practices, processing raw materials and waste streams more efficiently, and adding value to products in demand by markets, are key opportunities for investment. It is an occasion to turn a new page for the region”.

“EBRD firmly believes that the economic value of forests needs to be optimized by balancing the use of forests for multiple economic activities with their core ecological functions, such as conservation of biological diversity, protecting watercourses and water quality as well as absorbing carbon dioxide to mitigate climate change,” commented Lindsay Forbes, the EBRD's Director for Industry, Commerce and Agriculture in the Russian Federation. “Therefore, it is the highest priority to EBRD to ensure that the exploitation of the economic potential of the forests is based on sustainable forest management principles and practices ensuring that appropriate forest areas are protected,” Mr. Forbes added.

In particular, EBRD and FAO stressed that the forestry sector in the region lacks a qualified workforce which is crucial to stimulate the development of new technologies. The industry would require additional investment in human capital, as well as reforms in the education system. The Roadmap suggests that higher education institutions should include specialized forestry topics in their curricula, for instance on the certification of wood products.

The Roadmap also highlighted the importance of tapping on the availability of low-quality wood and wood wastes to produce bioenergy which will improve the efficiency of current production and create new jobs.

During the forum, delegates agreed on the importance of maximizing synergies between the use of available resources and the adoption of sustainable forest management practices to realize the forests' full potential as an important source of timber and improve the quality of the region's forest resources.

The Investment Roadmap is the result of a joint EBRD/FAO project designed to help the Government of the Russian Federation develop supportive forestry policies and create a favourable investment climate for forest industries in the region.