India ranks 3rd in raise in forest cover by Global Forest Resources Assessment

The FRA says that India accounts to 2% of total global forest area

• The Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) has brought out Global Forest Resource Assessment report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations
• The report assesses state of forests in the member countries, their conditions and management.
• According to the report, India ranked third among top 10 countries where forest cover has increased in the last decade

Key Points of the Assessment report

• The top 10 countries that have recorded the maximum average annual net gains in forest area during 2010-2020 are China, Australia, India, Chile, Vietnam, Turkey, the United States, France, Italy and Romania
• India has ranked third among the top 10 countries that have gained in forest areas in the last decade
• The Asian continent reported the highest net gain in forest area in 2010-2020, according to the report
• It recorded 1.17 million hectares (ha) per year net increase in forests in the last decade
• South Asia sub-region reported net forest losses during 1990-2020. But, this decline would have been much higher without the net gain in India’s forest during this period
• During the decade under assessment, India reported 0.38 per cent annual gain in forest, or 266,000 ha of forest increase every year at an average
• The FRA 2020 has credited the government’s Joint Forest Management program for the significant increase in community-managed forest areas in the Asian continent
• The assessment examined employment in the forestry sector (including logging) with data from 136 countries that represent 91 per cent of the world’s forests

Key highlights of assessment on India

• India has ranked third among the top 10 countries that have gained in forest areas in the last decade
• India accounts for two per cent of total global forest area
• The forest area managed by local, tribal and indigenous communities in India increased from zero in 1990 to about 25 million ha in 2015
• The naturally regenerating forest rate is disappointing, according to the assessment. It is also an indicator of the policies that India is pursuing
• India has been taking up massive aforestation and plantation schemes
• During 2010-20, the rate of increase in naturally regenerating forest was just 0.38 per cent according to the FRA 2020
• The assessment examined employment in the forestry sector (including logging) with data from 136 countries that represent 91 per cent of the world’s forests
• India reported the maximum employment in the forestry sector in the world
• Globally, 12.5 million people were employed in the forestry sector
• Out of this, India accounted for 6.23 million, or nearly 50 per cent

What is “Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA)”?

• It reports on the status and trends of the world’s forest resources
• It is led by the Forestry Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• The FRA reports the extent of the world’s forest area as well as other variables, including land tenure and access rights, sustainable forest management (SFM), legal and institutional frameworks for forest conservation, and sustainable use
• The assessment is based on two primary sources of data: country reports prepared by national correspondents and remote sensing that is combined with national focal points and international partners, such as the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC)

Pic courtesy : affairscloud.com