Forest governance refers to the institutional, legal and organizational framework conditions for forest management. The success of international forest policy depends largely on pragmatic implementation of national initiatives, concepts and approaches. The objective of this forest governance project is to support German development cooperation partner countries with regards to their forest governance improvement efforts. This includes forest biodiversity conservation, Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+), Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) and related initiatives. During this multi-year project, UNIQUE supported the elaboration of national REDD+ strategies and facilitated FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) negotiations in different countries.

• Management of the expert team of the consortium UNIQUE-ECO-Hessen-Forst.
• Support development and implementation of national REDD+ strategies.
• Facilitate negotiation and implementation of FLEGT VPAs.
• Analysis and further development of specific governance issues.
• Information and knowledge management.