March 21 to be marked as Int'l Day of Forests

The United Nations General Assembly has declared March 21 as International Day of Forests.
The day will be observed from 2013 to celebrate and raise awareness on the importance of all types of forests and trees outside forests.

“The day captures the spirit of and keeps up the momentum generated by the International Year of Forests 2011, which enabled countries to promote sustainable management, development and conservation of all types of forests and trees,” the News Agency of Nigeria quoted FAO as saying in a statement issued on Saturday.

It said on that day countries were being encouraged to get involved in local, national and international efforts in favour of forests and trees, such as tree planting campaigns.
The governing conference of the FAO supported the idea of the day, while the UN General Assembly facilitated the negotiation process for its establishment.

“FAO looks forward to supporting its members and working with international partners, including the Collaborative Partnership on Forests, to help celebrate the day,” the statement added.

Forest Day is one of the world`s leading global platforms for people with an interest in forests and climate change to share their views and work together to ensure forests are suitably incorporated into any future climate change mitigation and adaption strategies.

Each year more than 13 million hectares (32 million acres) of forests are lost, an area roughly the size of England. As go the forests so goes the plant and animal species they embrace – 80% of all terrestrial biodiversity. Most importantly, forests play a crucial role in climate change including global warming: deforestation causes 12-18 percent of the world`s carbon emissions – almost equal to all the CO2 from the global transport sector. Equally crucial, healthy forests are one of the world`s primary `carbon sinks.`

It is not too late to reverse this destructive trend if we act now. Forests still cover more than 30% of all the world`s land and contain more than 60,000 tree species, many still undiscovered. The forests support the livelihoods of 1.6 billion of the world`s poorest people by providing food, fiber, water and medicines, as well as regulating environments. Those supported include indigenous peoples with unique and precious cultures.


/AzerTAc/