The Country-Led Initiative on Financing for Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) in Support of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF): The Paramaribo Dialogue met from 8-12 September 2008 in Paramaribo, Suriname.

Over 225 participants representing governments and inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations gathered to identify opportunities to enhance financing for SFM. The conference, organized by the governments of Suriname, the Netherlands and the US, sought to provide a forum for participants to share experiences with mobilizing forest funding and generating revenues, identify emerging and existing public and private financing sources, and examine the relationship between forest financing and forest-related governance. Throughout the week, participants discussed: producer, consumer and community perspectives on financing SFM; financing from ecosystem services; and institutional and governance strategies at the national and international levels for increasing SFM financing. A Co-Chair’s Summary Report was produced, which aims to inform discussions at the meeting of the UNFF Ad Hoc Expert Group on Finance, to be held from 10-14 November 2008 in Vienna, Austria, and at UNFF8’s deliberations on adopting a decision on SFM financing, which will take place from 20 April-1 May 2009, in New York, US.
Link to further information
IISD RS coverage of the meeting