August 2014: The Commission des Forets d’Afrique Centrale (COMIFAC) convened a technical expert meeting as well as the extraordinary session of the Council of Ministers of Environment and Forestry of COMIFAC countries on 17-18 July 2014. The meetings focused largely on finance.

The technical meeting considered options for financing for sustainable forest management (SFM) given the slow rate of mobilization of development assistance. The meeting also called for the active engagement of forest ministers in the post-2015 development agenda.

The Council of Ministers considered financial matters including the 2013 audit and the restructuring plan for the COMIFAC financing system. The Council also validated the Convergance Plan, continued planning for the Third Summit of Heads of State, and discussed the harmonization of positions for international negotiations.

With regard to projects, the Council welcomed progress in the implementation of sub-regional programmes and projects however; the Council decided that projects should not be approved unless there is a management budget for financial reporting. Projects that were taken note of included the South-South cooperation project with the government of Brazil and the technical and financial cooperation agreements with the government of Germany. [Congo Basin Forest Partnership (CBFP) Press Release] [Publication: Raport de la Session Extraordinaire du Conseil des Ministres de la COMIFAC de Brazzaville – 18 juillet 2014]