May 2013: The Forestry section of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has released the May edition of its inFO News, highlighting the adoption of two multi-issue resolutions at the tenth session of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF10).

In regional news, the newsletter highlights a workshop that convened participants from Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey on sustainable financing mechanisms in the Middle East and North Africa. The workshop, held in Rabat, Morocco, from 3-5 April 2013, was jointly-organized by the Moroccan Le Haut Commissaire aux Eaux et Forêts et à la Lutte Contre la Désertification (HCEFLCD), FAO, UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Silva Mediterranea, and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).

Also in regional news, the newsletter covers a meeting of the African Organisation of English-speaking Supreme Audit Institutions (AFROSAI) Working Group on Environmental Auditing. The meeting was held in Cairo, Egypt, from 14-19 April 2013, on the themes of environmental auditing, the protection of water resources, and current and future environmental challenges in Africa.

Other items covered in this edition of inFO News include the adoption of the first Global Plan for Action for the Conservation, Sustainable Use and Development of Forest Genetic Resources by FAO’s Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA); FAO Council preparation for the 38th Session of the FAO Conference; EU-FAO Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (EU FAO FLEGT) Programme activities on forest law, governance, and trade; Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative; and a host of new publications on economic development, finance, forest products, and the green economy. [Publication: inFO News No. 10] [IISD RS coverage of CGRFA 14] [IISD RS Story on EU FAO FLEGT]