Community forest management opportunities
How will the project help?
What are the expected outcomes?
Who are we collaborating with?
Information and resources
Photo gallery
Community forest management opportunities
PNG's Forestry and Climate Change Framework for Action (2009-2015) emphasizes the need for a multi-stakeholder approach to community forest management (CFM) that engages customary landowners at the local level and enhances the capacity of government institutions at the national level. PNG's forest resource owners possess a wealth of knowledge about the quality of their forests, but many have historically been excluded from forest resource assessment activities, forest management decision-making processes, and associated development opportunities such as PES and REDD+.
Baseline research has revealed a diverse project context with some significant similarities. People living in the pilot areas are generally disadvantaged relative to those living in other parts of the country with regards to household income, local qualifications, and access to markets and services. On the other hand, each local community appears well organized and self-reliant, with large areas of forest owned and managed by local clan groups. Households are generally well-focused on feeding, housing and educating their family, as well as contributing to their various clan and village obligations. In this environment, the project's local partners provide an important link with the outside world; opening up new opportunities for enhancing rural livelihoods for present and future generations. Whilst local partner resources and development strategies are quite varied, their overall objectives are similar.
How will the project help?
The aim of the ITTO project is to establish a model community-based mapping and forest resource assessment system that will address the three identified constraints to community forest management (CFM) in PNG:
- Limited landowner involvement in community forestry programs;
- Poor community forest management practices and often high community expectations;
- Inadequate policies, strategies and plans for promoting and supporting CFM.
The PNG Forest Authority is working with five local CFM partners and their pilot landowner groups to set a new standard for improved forest management and land use decision-making.
What are the expected outcomes?
Project participants are working at national and local levels to establish a model community-based land mapping and forest resource assessment system that supports community forest management (CFM) schemes, and leads to the following ongoing benefits for project participants from the four stakeholder groups:
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Increased understanding about the goods and services their forests provide;
- Increased awareness about PNG's National Sustainable Land Use Policy
- Increased capacity to participate in feasible CFM schemes;
- Improved forest management practices and security over their resources in the long-term;
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Improved forest management practices and long-term resource security within their target areas;
- Increased access to CFM tools, services and opportunities.
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Improved coordination with other government agencies responsible for CFM activities; and
- Increased information flows from the forest that will support policy implementation, including forest planning processes.
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Improved access to information and networks on landownership and forest resources in PNG.
Who are we collaborating with?
The project is financed by the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), managed by the PNG Forest Authority, and implemented in collaboration with the following partners:
- Climate Change Development Authority
- Conservation, Environment & Protection Authority
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FORCERT (Forests for Certain, Forests for Life)
- Foundation for People & Community Development
- Milne Bay Provincial Administration
- Organization for Industrial, Spiritual & Cultural Advancement
Information & Resources
Community Foresters Tool Kit (CFTK)
The National Sustainable Land Use Policy (NSLUP) aims to promote and implement sustainable land-use and management in Papua New Guinea (PNG) in accordance with its objectives and guiding principles. The Community Foresters Tool Kit (CFTK) is being assembled to support the development of PNG's national system of bottom-up, participatory land-use planning by customary landowners under NSLUP's Objective K; starting at the ward levels, and forming the basis of local level, district & provincial sustainable land-use plans. The CFTK contains all the resources developed by the project, including:
- Data collection forms - 11 data collection forms, covering 5 high-priority CFM topics, have been constructed on Kobo Toolbox, tested by project partners on Kobo Collect , and reviewed during a national workshop.
- Awareness videos - 7 promotional videos are currently being prepared with project partners and their target communities (one for each CFM topic, one for NSLUP and one for NSLUP objective K).
- Guidance sheets - 7 guidance sheets have been prepared with project partners and their target communities (one for each CFM topic, one for NSLUP and one for NSLUP objective K).
Once finalised, these resources will be added to Community Foresters Tool Kit that is hosted on the Resources section of this website. They will also be freely available on Google Drive.
Technical Reports
- Technical Report 1 presents the potential variables to be measured, mapped and interpreted that have been identified to enable customary landowners to participate effectively in community forest management (CFM) schemes within 5 pilot areas of Papua New Guinea (PNG).
- Technical Report 2 presents the data collection and management software that has been prepared to enable customary landowners to participate effectively in community forest management (CFM) schemes within 5 pilot areas of Papua New Guinea (PNG).
CFM News
- CFM News: Q1 (June to August 2022)
- CFM News: Q2 (September to November 2022)
- CFM News: Q3 (January to March 2023)
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Photo gallery
December 2023: Research & Conservation Foundation (RCF) team working with the Haia Community in Simbu Province to record wildlife observations using Form 5A within the Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area.
August 2023: Foundation for People & Community Development (FPCD) team working with the Ugalingu Community in Madang Province to record above ground forest biomass using Form 3A at a permanent sample plot within the Ugalingu Conservation Area.
May 2022: Debes Kenny (Public Relations Officer, PNGFA) filming the Ward Member for Girabu in Milne Bay Province for the Project's 5th CFM Awareness Video titled "How do socio-economic surveys help forest resource owners?"
April 2023: Ainbul Community leaders with their Land Use Map (centre) comprising 6 land-use zones covering 23,000 hectares of land. This includes a well-managed cash crop zone; producing high-value products for the Kimbe market including balsa, cocoa (right), ornamental plants & flowers, and vanilla (left).
March 2023: Project Steering Committee members participating in the 4th meeting, with Zoom link for provincial level participants (left). The meeting was attended by Dr. Hwan-ok Ma from ITTO, who will be retiring at the end of this year. On behalf of the PNGFA, Dambis Kaip presented Dr. Hwan-ok Ma with a picture in recognition of his generous support to sustainable forest management in PNG (centre). He also visited the ITTO Reforestation Project sites in Central province (right).
February / March 2023: Landowners participating in FORCERT's Social Enterprise Program at Ainbul in West New Britain Province (left), Local Data Collectors from Ugalingu in Madang Province receiving the solar charging equipment from FPCD (centre) and Billy Huanaromo (RCF PNG) leading the land-use survey at Mengino in Eastern Highlands Province (right)
October / November 2022: Project participants from the Milne Bay Provincial Administration (left) and Foundation for People & Community Development (right) setting up their new data collection devices (including laptops & tablets) in preparation for the data collection activity next year, alonside a participant at the 1st Project Technical Meeting in Goroka (centre) reading the Guidance Sheet for Forest Biomass Surveys.
October 2022: Twenty-seven participants from 11 organisations took part in the 2-day national workshop at APEC Haus in Port Moresby. Feedback was collected on the CFM resources and platforms being developed by the Project, and preparations made for the remaining activities under the 3rd yearly plan of operation (YPO 3).
August 2022: Project participants from the University of Goroka (left), Research & Conservation Foundation (centre), and PNG Forest Authority (right) trying out their selected data collections forms on their personal mobile phones at the Research & Conservation Foundation in Goroka, Eastern Highlands Province.
August 2022: Research & Conservation Foundation staff recording their GPS locations on their personal mobile phones using the practice form outside their office in Goroka, Eastern Highlands Province.
July 2022: FORCERT staff setting-up their personal laptops and mobile phones with the project resources on the KoboToolbox, KoboCollect and Google Drive platforms with help from the PNGFA field officer (left) at their office in Kimbe, West New Britain Province.
Project focus area: Communication, learning and knowledge building (CLKB), Community driven development (CDD), Forests, climate change and REDD (FCCREDD)