Global Forest Goals Report, 2021

May 1, 2021

The United Nations recently released the Global Forest Goals Report, 2021. According to the report, the COVID-19 has increased the challenges faced by countries in managing their forests.

Key Findings of the report

During COVID-19 the forest dependent population faced reduced income, job losses, diminished access to markets and information. Most of the forest dependent population faced difficulty in accessing healthcare and basic services.

Reliance on forests

According to the report,

Around 1.6 billion people rely on forests. This is 25% of global population.
Of the rural areas in the world, more than 40% live in Savannah and forests. This is 20% of the global population.

Key goals as identified by the report

Australia: To plant 20 million trees by 2020. This is to be increased to billion plantations by 2030
Brazil: To increase the planted areas to two million hectares
India: To add 200,000 hectares of tree and forest cover per year
Kenya: To increase tree cover by 10%
Myanmar: To increase forest cover to 30%
Japan: To maintain the 25 million hectares of forest area
New Zealand: To plant 1 billion trees by 2028
Thailand: To increase forest cover to 55%
Sri Lanka: To increase forest cover to 32%
Nigeria: To increase forest cover from 6% to 25% by 2030

Background

The report provides an overview of the six Global Forest Goals out of the twenty-six targets of National Strategic Plan for Forests. The six goals are as follows:

Reverse Forest Cover Loss
Improve Forest Benefits and Livelihoods
Protect Forests and use sustainable forest products
Mobilise resources
Promote inclusive forest governance
Cooperate and work across the sectors

The United Nations Strategic Plan for forests was created to promote sustainable forest management. It was to be implemented between 2017 and 2030. The main objective of the plan is to increase the forest area in the world by 3% by 2030. That is, to bring 120 million hectares of land under forest cover.

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