The Rainforests of Cameroon - PROFOR

132 Appendix 1resulted in paper reforms and contributed little to improving forest governanceand sustainability on the ground.The Third Structural Adjustment Credit (1998). This $150 millioncredit was intended to increase the country’s short-term liquidity andestablish reforms that would benefit the economy in the longer term. Itincluded a fixed tranche common to four sectors plus a floating tranche.Common tranche disbursement was contingent on all sectors meeting specificconditions, a mechanism that generated pressure on ministries thatlagged behind. Floating tranches were sector specific, and the nondeliveryof one sector would not undermine disbursement of other sectors’ tranches.Given the poor previous results and the risk that forest conditions wouldget in the way of disbursing SAC resources, both Bank staff and governmentofficials hesitated to consider forests as a sector for SAC III.In contrast to previous structural adjustments programs, SAC III containedseveral detailed and specific conditions related to forestry (boxA1.1). Some were required for disbursement of the fixed tranche of theloan, while others were included in a floating tranche whose disbursementschedule was left open and was contingent on forestry conditionalities.This structure made credit disbursements more dependent onforestry reforms and created incentives for the government to acceleratethe reform process, without tying all the reforms to a fixed schedule.The forest component of SAC III aimed at creating regulations andinstitutional capacity to implement the 1994 Forest Law, which, in 1998existed only on paper. The themes underlying its measures were to generateand test political commitment to the 1994 Forest Law, create the regulatoryinfrastructure to implement the Forest Law, design and enforce anew forest taxation system, and improve sector transparency, governance,and combat corruption. The reform package focused on fundamentalpolicy issues that were essential to resolve to establish minimum sectorgovernance conditions and eliminate distortions.Since 1998, forest sector reforms have been woven into most if notall relevant development efforts that the World Bank conducted in coordinationor collaboration with the IMF, other donors, and NGOs with astrong presence in Cameroon. The progress toward the completion pointof the HIPC Initiative Delivered was also by The triggered World Bank by e-library forestry to: measures. The mostThe World Bankimportant of these was the respect IP : 192.86.100.34 of the SAC III reforms; the HIPC documentclearly stated that Mon, the 09 “satisfactory Nov 2009 17:06:18 implementation of the SACIII reforms is a benchmark to the achievement of the HIPC completionpoint.” More specifically, special attention was given to enforcing the for-(c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank