Publication: Social impacts of the Forest Stewardship Council certification - An assessment in the Congo basin.
Social impacts of the Forest Stewardship Council certification - An assessment in the Congo basin.
| dc.contributor.author | Cerutti, P.O. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Tsanga, R. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Kassa, S.N. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Mapangou, P.R. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Medoula.E.E. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Missamba-Lola, A.P. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Nasi, R. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2022-01-23T18:55:14Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2022-01-23T18:55:14Z | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://open.fsc.org/handle/resource/533 | |
| dc.title | Social impacts of the Forest Stewardship Council certification - An assessment in the Congo basin. | en |
| dcterms.abstract | Since the first half of the 1990s, forest certification has been promoted as a means to tackle global deforestation and forest degradation. Among the existing initiatives, the voluntary, market- based, third-party certification system offered by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is the most prominent in terms of global share for the certification of responsible forest management in the tropics. FSC certification has been promoted by environmental and social groups, and more recently also by businesses and governments. The FSC scheme assesses companies and forest management units (FMUs) against a set of principles, criteria and indicators by checking that management is environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable. Although the FSC standard has a strong social component that seeks to improve relationships between logging companies and local populations and contribute significantly to local development, social impacts are under-researched, and the existing literature shows conflicting results. In particular, in the Congo basin, the focus of this occasional paper, there is a limited number of assessments of the social impacts of forest certification and its expected impact on the local population and their customary rights. Such rights are also guaranteed, with some restrictions, by existing statutory provisions in all Congo basin countries. More robust evaluations have not yet been possible because of the very recent history of FSC certification in the region: The first currently valid certificate in the region was only granted at the end of 2005. As of 2013, however, the Congo basin had the largest area of certified natural tropical forest in the world, with about 5.3 million ha. This is still a relatively small proportion (ca. 7–13%) of all FMUs in the region. We believe it is time, before certification expands further, to assess whether the social impacts in certified FMUs show any sign of improvement compared to noncertified ones. This comparison is also timely because (1) the legal frameworks of the study countries have many similarities to the social requirements of FSC certification, thus allowing an indirect assessment of the legal frameworks' social impacts, and (2) some tropical producer countries recently proposed recognizing FSC-certified timber as compliant with the requirements of the EU's Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan. Once the Action Plan is fully operational in those countries, the FSC- certified timber produced there could be exported as legal timber. This occasional paper assesses whether the implementation of FSC certification in FMUs in three Congo basin countries has had positive additional impacts on (1) the working and living conditions of logging companies' employees and their families, (2) the effectiveness and legitimacy of the institutions set up to regulate relationships between logging companies and neighbouring communities, and (3) the local populations' rights to and customary uses of forests. | en |
| dcterms.accessRights | Public | |
| dcterms.accessRights | Open access | |
| dcterms.bibliographicCitation | Cerutti, P.O., Lescuyer, G., Tsanga, R., Kassa, S.N., Mapangou, P.R., Mendoula, E.E., Missamba-Lola, A.P., Nasi, R., Eckebil, P.P.T. and Yembe, R.Y., 2014. Social impacts of the Forest Stewardship Council certification: An assessment in the Congo basin (Vol. 103). CIFOR. | en |
| dcterms.issued | 2017 | |
| dcterms.language | en | |
| dcterms.license | CC-BY-NC-ND-3.0 | en |
| dcterms.type | Journal Article | |
| dspace.entity.type | Publication | |
| fsc.evidenceCategory | FSC impact-related | |
| fsc.focus.forestType | Natural Forest | |
| fsc.focus.forestZone | Tropical | |
| fsc.focus.sustainDimension | Social | |
| fsc.focus.tenureManagement | Private | |
| fsc.focus.tenureOwnership | Public | |
| fsc.issue.social | Workers | |
| fsc.issue.social | Local communities and Indigenous peoples | |
| fsc.subject | Workers | |
| fsc.subject | Health and safety | |
| fsc.subject | Working conditions | |
| fsc.subject | Conflict resolution | |
| fsc.subject | Living conditions | |
| fsc.topic.social | Health and safety | |
| fsc.topic.social | Working conditions | |
| fsc.topic.social | Conflict resolution | |
| fsc.topic.social | Living conditions | |
| fsc.topic.social | Consultation, participation, empowerment | |
| is.availability.fullText | Full text available | |
| is.contributor.funderType | Public funds (government, EU funding, public research grants) | |
| is.contributor.member | Forest Stewardship Council | |
| is.coverage.country | Cameroon | |
| is.coverage.country | Gabon | |
| is.coverage.countryAlpha2 | CM | |
| is.coverage.countryAlpha2 | CG | |
| is.coverage.countryAlpha2 | GA | |
| is.coverage.geographicLevel | Country | |
| is.coverage.latitude | 7.369722 | |
| is.coverage.latitude | -0.803689 | |
| is.coverage.longitude | 12.354722 | |
| is.coverage.longitude | 11.609444 | |
| is.coverage.region | Africa | |
| is.evaluation.collection | Focus groups | |
| is.evaluation.collection | Govt. Data | |
| is.evaluation.collection | Surveys with Certified Entities | |
| is.evaluation.counterfacts | Yes | |
| is.evaluation.dataSource | Data by scheme / tool under evaluation | |
| is.evaluation.findings | The annual redistribution of benefits to all neighboring villages was done more often by FSC-certified companies than uncertified ones (89% and 33%, respectively). These benefits were funds aimed at improving local livelihood and foster local development over the long-term (while the objectives of non-certified companies reflect short-term vision). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in the practice of shifting cultivation inside forest operations between FSC-certified and uncertified concessions (44% and 33%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in terms of hunting inside forest operations between FSC-certified and uncertified concessions (89% and 100%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in terms of NTFPs gathering inside forest operations between FSC-certified and uncertified concessions (67% and 100%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Local populations around certified operations perceive its presence as a constraint to shifting cultivation more than the populations around noncertified operations (43% and 14%, respectively), although the difference was not statistically significant. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Local populations around certified operations perceive its presence as a constraint to hunting more than the populations around noncertified operations (83% and 50%, respectively), although the difference was not statistically significant. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Local populations around certified operations perceive its presence as a constraint to NTFPs gathering more than the populations around noncertified operations (17% and0%, respectively), although the difference was not statistically significant. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified companies adopted and implemented mechanisms for the compensation of loss or damages to local population more often than uncertified ones (100% and 25%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified companies adopted private benefit-sharing mechanisms more often than uncertified ones (100% and 44%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations had more often active and officially recognized associative bodies with a mandate for collective bargaining than uncertified forest operations (100% and 25% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Institutions (e.g. official platforms of discussion, associative bodies) established or having received funds from the logging company were more present in villages associated with certified forest operations than that with uncertified ones (69% and 31% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Among all active institutions, significantly more were established by current logging company when it was FSC-certified than uncertified (63% and 20%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Institutions had more often written procedure to manage institutions in villages associated with FSC-certified forest operations than in villages associated with uncertified operations (85% and 53%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Institutions members were more often elected (vs appointed) in villages associated with FSC-certified operations than in villages associated with uncertified operations (86% and 53%, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Institutions authorized more often external membership when associated with FSC-certified forest operations than when associated with uncertified operations (63% and 7%, respectively). The authors suggest that the inclusion of external members (such as decentralised state officials and NGOs) could encourage more transparent and technically sound decisions in the adoption and implementation of projects. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Institutions renewed members more often when associated with FSC-certified forest operations than when associated with uncertified operations (89% and 60%, respectively). The authors suggest that the periodic renewal were more likely to represent different lineages. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | In terms of having clear written procedures for resolution of conflicts between the staff association and the company, there were no significant differences between certified and uncertified companies, although certified ones had more (25% and 0% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Relative to the number of existing institutions (e.g. official platforms of discussion, associative bodies), the proportion of active ones were as frequent in villages associated with FSC-certified operations than that with uncertified ones (96% and 73% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations had more often written and enforced procedures to control and verify use of safety equipment than uncertified concessions (present in 90% and 25% of forest operations, respectively). For instance, even though certified and uncertified companies provided safety equipments, uncertified ones rarely verified its correct use by a dedicated staff. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations provided health- and life-insurance to all staff more often than uncertified forest operations (100% and 25% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations provided local medical facilities more often than uncertified forest operations (100% and 38% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations had more often injuries-related procedures than uncertified forest operations (88% and 12% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations had more often written procedures for waste collection and treatment than the uncertified forest operations (100% and 20% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in the provision of safety gear between FSC-certified and uncertified forest operations (provided in 100% and 75% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in the provision of permanent contract to staff between FSC-certified and uncertified forest operations (87% and 2% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | The representation of women over all staff was similar in certified and uncertified forest operations, showing a highly imbalanced workforce (97% of men employed). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | The salary range was higher than national collective agreements as often in certified operations as in uncertified ones (57% and 25% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Company housing from FSC-certified forest operations were more often associated with individual home showers and WC systems than from uncertified concessions (100% and 46% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | FSC-certified forest operations had more often written procedures for house occupancy than the uncertified concessions (88% and 29% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in the availability and conditions of mini-markets for workers between FSC-certified and uncertified forest operations. They were present in all forest operations. | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in the provision and quality of potable water between FSC-certified and uncertified forest operations (present in 86% and 67% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | There were no difference in the provision of electricity in company housing between FSC-certified and uncertified forest operations (electricity provided 24/7 in 100% and 50% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.findings | Company housing made of durable material were found as often in FSC-certified forest operations as in uncertified ones (87% and 40% of forest operations, respectively). | |
| is.evaluation.notes | It is found that FSC certification leads to a significant positive change in the social conditions by companies getting pushed towards to adopt FSC P&C and to communicate with the local stakeholders. | |
| is.evaluation.outcome | yes | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | The results also show that the financial returns from certified forest products are much higher than for non-certified forest products for the farmer, both at 7% and 12% interest rates. However, these differences are dependent on the donor organisation bearing most of the costs of certification. | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | Comparing the sawmiller"'s returns with the farmer"'s returns per cubic metre of final product (Table 5) indicates that the farmer"'s return much higher than that of the sawmiller and that there is a gain in having certified products for both actors. The benefit of certified pro- ducts for the sawmiller is more than 1.4 times higher than for un- certified products, while for the farmer it is about 1.2 times higher. | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | The results of this study indicate that, growing acacia plantations for timber over a 10 year rotation can result in net benefits to both tree growers and sawmiller. Assuming most of the costs of certification are borne by external parties, there are higher returns from producing product for a certified market, with a greater relative return to the sawmiller from certification | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | However, because of additional costs and other management issues, certification may not be a desirable option for a smallholder. | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | So far, our discussion has been based on current practices in which the SNV and WWF are organising farmers into a group and support them by covering most of the certification costs and the farmers themselves are bearing only a nominal certification fee. Under this ar- rangement and the scenarios presented here both the farmers and the sawmiller have positive returns from engaging in a supply chain for certified forest products." Notably, the authors also mention that "applying the full cost of certification to the grower will change these results considerably, depending on who bears the costs of certification". | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | Our analysis (Table 7) suggested that an aggregation of 3000 ha of smallholder farmers might receive sufficient overall return from selling certified wood to cover the costs of certification. | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | that an aggregation of 3000 ha of smallholder farmers might receive sufficient overall return from selling certified wood to cover the costs of certification...Even the current group certification schemes, supported by the WWF and SNV in the study area, have found it difficult to attract enough smallholders and required forest area for certification. | |
| is.evaluation.quotes | If the smallholder growers are required to bear all costs of certification, it will only be marginally profitable to grow for this market, unless there is a significant increase in the price of certified logs or the costs of forest management plans and paperwork can be reduced or spread over a large number of growers. | |
| is.evaluation.scope | Methodologically thorough impact assessment focusing on the social impacts of FSC certification in the Congo Basin. Especially the differences in working and living conditions, institutional and participational aspects in certified and uncertified FMUs are examined by conducting a review of the mechanisms implemented by logging companies in Cameroon, Gabon and the Republic of the Congo. | |
| is.evaluation.significance | Statistically significant | |
| is.evidenceSubType | Empirical study - qualitative | |
| is.evidenceType | Empirical study | |
| is.focus.products | Other forestry and logging | |
| is.focus.sdg | SDG 17 - Partnerships for the Goals | |
| is.focus.sectors | Forestry | |
| is.focus.sustainDimension | Social | |
| is.focus.sustainIssue | Rights of indigenous peoples and local communities | |
| is.focus.sustainLens | Ecosystem | |
| is.focus.sustainOutcome | Community development and infrastructure | |
| is.focus.systemElement | MandE outcomes and impacts | |
| is.focus.systemElement | MandE performance monitoring | |
| is.identifier.code | Impacts | |
| is.identifier.doi | https://doi.org/10.17528/cifor/004487 | |
| is.identifier.fscdoi | http://dx.doi.org/10.34800/fsc-international583 | |
| is.identifier.schemeName | Forest Stewardship Council | |
| is.identifier.schemeType | Voluntary Sustainability Standards | |
| is.item.reviewStatus | Peer reviewed | |
| is.journalName | International Forestry Review |