The Rainforests of Cameroon - PROFOR

Objectives and Content of the Reforms 59Box 3.8Partnerships with international nongovernmentalorganizationsIndependent forest monitoringIn June 2002, the government of Cameroon signed a formal agreement withthe World Resources Institute–Global Forest Watch to jointly monitor all timberharvesting nationwide. The monitoring, based on remote sensing andgeographic information systems, includes such tools as interactive maps anddatabases consistent with original Forest Department data; field observations;and comparisons of data with the private sector and national nongovernmentalorganizations. The information gathered is verified with all stakeholders beforebeing officially accepted by the Ministry of Forests and Wildlife (MINFOF) andreleased on the Internet as the annual Interactive Forestry Atlas for Cameroon. Theatlas has become a powerful tool for governance, because it discloses detaileddata on forest harvesting permits, maps the location of harvesting in all typesof forests, and reveals the presence of forest roads and other physical signs oflegal and illegal logging.An independent observer to support law enforcementIndependent monitoring by third parties has been used in Cameroon since 2001to detect and prosecute illegal logging more effectively. The establishment andmaintenance of independent monitoring was a trigger for disbursement underthe Country Assistance Strategy and for debt relief under the Heavily IndebtedPoor Countries Initiative.The monitoring project was not initiated (though it was later cofinanced) bythe World Bank; rather, Global Witness (GW) was invited to carry out this groundbreakingwork in 2001 after successful scoping missions funded by the UnitedKingdom. GW was appointed independent observer in May 2001 and served inthat capacity until March 2005, when it was succeeded by Resource ExtractionMonitoring (REM), an internationally recruited nongovernmental organization.Among other things, the independent observer is responsible for:• Ensuring the objectivity and transparency of monitoring undertaken byMINFOF Delivered by The World Bank e-library to:The World Bank• Strengthening the operational IP : 192.86.100.34capacity of MINFOF’s law enforcement services,especially the Central Mon, 09 Control Nov 2009 Unit 17:06:18 (CCU), by improving and enforcingproceduresBox continues on next page(c) The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank