Certification
From NTFP
Contents |
INTRODUCTION
CRITERIA
SYSTEMS
CHALLENGES
CASES
Introducing FSC certification in Nepal
By Bhishma Subedi, Executive Director, ANSAB
Providing medicinal plants and non-timber forest products as ingredients for the international herbal and health care industry often causes destruction of forests and forest communities in remote regions of the world. In small villages in the Nepal Himalayas, for example, medicinal herb traders encourage the poorest people living in the forests to harvest as many medicinal plants as they can, pay them the lowest prices for the herbs, and abandon the community when the plant supply (also known as non-timber forest products) runs out. These herbs may then turn up in the herbal medicines that western consumers buy from the pharmacies or health food shop. The result is that the poor become poorer and end up destroying their only livelihood -- the biodiversity rich forest.
To address this issue, a unique alliance (the Nepali Non-timber Forest Product Promotion Alliance) of corporations, government and non-profits was formed with the goal of combating this crisis of biodiversity loss in Nepal and preserving sustainable rural life by bringing about responsible business practices through education of business users. ANSAB (Asia Network for Sustainable Agriculture and Bioresources) coordinated the alliance and took lead role in order to develop sustainably collected medicinal herbs and other non-timber forest products (NTFPs) from the forest and to enhance their marketing. Forest certification was realized to be inevitable to achieve the goal through which to conserve the medicinal plants and non timber forest products as well as to alleviate the economic life standard of the people. Amongst many options of forest certification, ANSAB in coordination with the alliance chose the forest stewardship council (FSC) certification (as the most practical option) that supports environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world's forests and promotes responsible forest management. FSC also promotes responsible forest management by evaluating and accrediting certifiers, by encouraging the development of national and regional forest management standards, and by providing public education and information about independent, third party certification as a tool for ensuring the world’s forests that are protected for future generations.
The FSC certification initiative in Nepal took extensive efforts from capacity building of relevant stakeholders to the different technical accomplishments as per the requirements of FSC guidelines. After the necessary criterions were fulfilled, Rainforest Alliance/SmartWood awarded the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification to the Federation of Community Forestry Users Nepal (FECOFUN) provided that its members supply medicinal plants and NTFP ingredients to the international herbal and medicinal products industry.
For such medicinal plants and non-timber forest products, Nepal is the first country in Asia and fifth in the world to obtain FSC certification. Moreover this certification is the first in the world for handmade paper and also with regard to the variety and quality of medicinal plants and non-timber forest products.
Making the certification process a success in Nepal had been a challenging work for ANSAB and the alliance. As certification itself was a new subject in Nepal, it took large efforts to create awareness among the relevant stakeholders. Community forest users groups (CFUGs) were strengthened, assessment was carried out and eventually 11 CFUGs of Bajhang and Dolakha districts were brought to the pool of certification which covered 10,500 ha of forest land in the second year of the initiative (2004). And by the third year's audit (2005) it expanded to encompass 21 CFUGs and 14,086 hectares of forests.
The certification awarding is part of a larger effort of the alliance to combat destruction of forests and forest communities. The alliance includes representatives from the Nepali government; Nepali non governmental organizations (NGOs); private companies active in the herbal products industry, including Aveda; an FSC forest certification organization - Rainforest Alliance; community forestry user groups, represented by the Federation of Community Forestry Users, Nepal; and donors, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Ford Foundation, and the Netherlands Development Organization (SNV). This is the first time industry, government, NGOs, communities, and forest certifiers have combined expertise to make commercial trade of non-timber forest products in Nepal sustainable.
Moreover as a result of such efforts of the alliance, the promotion of responsible buying practices among industry in the West through the industrial symposiums (sponsored by Aveda) has attracted buyers ready to partner with the alliance and buy the Nepal FSC products. The pilot phase objectives were achieved despite a challenging civil situation in many areas of Nepal and have generated significant cash benefits to CFUG community members as well as have improved the governance of FECOFUN and targeted CFUGs. Industry coaching has resulted over 20 natural products based enterprises, which process and market a wide range of natural products including handmade papers, essential oils, Ayurvedic medicines and supplements, herbal teas, pain relief oil, personal care products, and crude herbs. The facilitation also resulted Nepali producers and enterprise to establish new business linkages and consolidate the NTFP supply, and product development and marketing of NTFPs in national and international markets. Within the project period, the enterprise development and sustainable marketing efforts of the alliance resulted a total sale of NTFPs worth Rs. 56,583,508 (about US $797,000) and generated 1282 direct NTFP processing and marketing jobs in the third full year. Significant portion of this amount went to the collectors and producer groups in the districts, creating local employment and reducing poverty.
The alliance's governance and civil society achievements exceeded members' expectations in the resulting positive working model for community forestry governance and relations with the Government. FECOFUN’s services to its CFUG members and relationship with the government has been improved as a result of the alliance. Before the alliance, FECOFUN did not offer services or even promote enterprise development activities among its CFUG members. FECOFUN did not have a uniform protocol for advising CFUGs on developing its operational plans (OP) and constitutions. The training from ANSAB and the FSC certification process provided a uniform protocol for advising CFUGs. FECOFUN has also noted that its relationship with the government has improved dramatically and they now feel more respected and able to represent the CFUG’s interests. A total of 21,638 grassroots participants received technical assistance on sustainable forest management that will allow further groups to join the FECOFUN FSC certification.
There are over 14,000 forest user groups (people living in or near the forest) across Nepal that include almost a third of Nepal’s population and cover 25% of the biodiversity rich forests. For most of these communities, medicinal plants and NTFP trade is the only livelihood besides subsistence agriculture. Nepal receiving this certification is groundbreaking and hopes to be a model for the rest of the world.
Click here for more information on NTFP certification in Nepal
--Rkwaschik 09:29, 18 September 2006 (UTC)
READINGS & LINKS
Digital Reference Guide on NTFP Certification
--Mmayank 06:27, 18 September 2006 (UTC)
