25 August 2010: The UN-REDD Programme has released the 11th issue of its newsletter, which includes the announcement that five new partner countries have joined the Programme.

The new partner countries are: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Central African Republic, Colombia and Guatemala. These additions bring the total number of partner countries to 18. The August issue of the newsletter also highlights recent activities related to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, conservation, sustainable forest management and enhancement of carbon stocks (REDD+). In particular, it features articles on: recent REDD-readiness activities in Latin America and the Caribbean; and a report from a UN-REDD side event at the Bonn Climate Talks in early August, on investing in good governance for REDD+. The side event underscored the need for secure tenure systems, strengthening law enforcement, and engaging women in REDD+, and explored ways to enhance country ownership of REDD+ governance through multistakeholder approaches. [UN-REDD Newsletter]