Informal consultations among delegates to the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF) took place from 15-16 September 2009, in New York, US, and resulted in agreed ad referendum text on means of implementation for sustainable forest management (SFM).

The objective of the consultations, which were led by co-facilitators UNFF 7 Chair Hans Hoogeveen (the Netherlands) and UNFF 8 Chair Boen Purnama (Indonesia), was to advance negotiations on means of implementation, which had stalled when a decision on the matter could not be reached at UNFF 8. The agreed ad ref text now states that an ad hoc expert group will be established with a view to making proposals on strategies to mobilize resources including, inter alia, strengthening and improving access to funds and establishing a voluntary global forest fund. The group will meet before UNFF 9 and 10. The text also establishes a facilitative process to catalyze implementation of SFM and the non-legally binding instrument on all types of forests. The informal consultations will continue on 8 October 2009 to permit delegates to conclude their work. According to an ECOSOC decision, since an agreement has been reached on these issues, a one-day special session of UNFF 9 will convene for the purpose of adopting the agreed text.
Link to further information
UNFF website