Certification and Indonesia

A briefing, DTE, April 2001

Read the PDF document here.

The certification of timber and forest products is intended to change forest management for the better through global timber markets. This form of ‘ecolabelling’ was initiated by conservationists and consumers in the North, where a market has been created for sustainably produced timber. Schemes are gradually being adopted in the South, although producers in the South are in a weaker position. In Indonesia, the certification of forests and plantations is still at a relatively early stage. However, there is considerable pressure – from a number of directions – to increase the amount of certified timber coming from Indonesia. Forest communities, timber concessionaires, northern consumers, donor governments and NGOs have different understandings, views and expectations of what certification can achieve. This document is a contribution to discussions about the role of certification in changing policy and practice in Indonesian forestry. An essential part of this debate is the relationship between certification and adat (customary) rights, community rights and increased community access to resources as part of more sustainable development in Indonesia.