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Apo Tutoh youth together withRicardo, an Agta from thePhilippinesphoto courtesy of Earl DiazMALAYSIAThis year saw the formation and establishment of theApoh Tutoh Community Youth Association. Throughthis association, the Penan youth now feel that they have aformal and credible platform and position to voice theirviews and concerns. The youth have been instrumental inthe rehabilitation (nursery and seedling development) andmapping processes of their communities. Their support ledto the increase in survival rate of the seedlings.In addition to mapping trainings, NTFP-EP has supportedworkshops on culture and forest issues which included plantidentification exercises and discussion of uses and importancein local culture. Focus of discussions was on threats to Penanculture, and ways to overcome cultural decline in the school,in the work place, and in the village.The Penan Cultural Festival in late 2011, had huge participationof 112 Penan community members from twelve villages andguests from the Bunong tribe in Cambodia and the Agta tribein the Philippines. The Penans proudly performed more thana dozen songs, dances and organized games and competitionsin the two day event, including the fire making demonstrationand the popular blow pipe competition. The Cambodianparticipant also shared his knowledge on medicinal plants.Inspired by the Crafts Kalimantan weavers meeting in Indonesiain 2010. Partners in Malaysia are establishing a similar craftsnetwork in Malaysia. The Jaringan Orang Asal Semenanjung(JOAS), the Malaysian indigenous people’s network, is leadingthis initiative. NTFP-EP has assisted them in developing aproposal and has had initial visits to community members. TheBorneo Chic shop in Jakarta has also become a new marketingchannel for some Malaysian Borneo communities.Finally, NTFP-EP in Malaysia has begun to engage theDepartment of Forestry, Sabah and Sarawak and the Ministryof Natural Resource and Environment on social forestry andNTFP development within the Asean Swiss Partnership onSocial Forestry and Climate Change (ASFCC) project. NTFP-EP with other NGOs has also begun discussions with SarawakForestry Corporation (SFC) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-Sarawak, Malaysia in relation to the High Conservation ValueForest (HCVF) assessment for a timber concession towardsFSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification. NTFP-EP’sinterest is to make sure that the rights of the local communitiesto land and forests are safeguarded in the process.NTFP-EP 2011 Annual Report | 17