How did Forcert start? 

Throughout PNG there are many communities owning and operating portable sawmilling equipment. They run sawmilling businesses of various scale and intensity to produce timber for local construction, to generate income and to create jobs at the village level. In the current situation these community producers try to sell their timber to town based timber yards often without proper prior arrangements. This leads to an unfavourable situation for both parties; producers do not get a good benefit for their product, as part of the timber is rejected or downgraded, and timber yards have no guarantee of any consistent supply. There is also no consideration for longer term market development linked to the actual forest resource, nor any incentive for practicing responsible forest management.

The certification of small-scale timber producers is generally seen as a logical next step in the development of a sustainable and viable small-scale forest industry in PNG. Certification helps small scale operations to achieve social and environmental sustainability, and allows them to increase their financial returns by opening export markets. It is considered an effective tool to achieve good forest management. However, for small-scale timber producers the costs of certification are prohibitive and the necessary systems and procedures too complex for them to participate in without outside assistance and support.

In Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands functioning models to assist small-scale producers to achieve certification have been trialed. Here producers came together under what is known as a Group Certificate which offers the possibility for the external costs of certification to be shared and allows an outside organisation to take care of much of the administrative burden. These trials were relatively successful and created considerable interest with the various stakeholders, both in PNG and in the region.

This increasing interest in forest certification with both producers and buyers in PNG, prompted the PNG Eco-Forestry Forum (PNG-EFF) to initiate a feasibility study into the development of an independent forest certification service organisation, finalised in July 2002. This lead to the establishment of the Forest Management & Product Certification Service (FORCERT), registered as a Not-For-Profit Company in October 2003.

The FORCERT Group Certification Service Network was developed in 2003 & 2004 by a wide range of stakeholders; village sawmill managers, timber yard staff and managers, eco-forestry, environmental and social NGO’s, and training, educational and research institutions.

Where does FORCERT work?

Following the recommendations of the feasibility study, FORCERT is concentrating its activities in a limited number of “most promising” areas; Aitape District, Bougainville, East New Britain, Madang, Morobe, Southern New Ireland and West New Britain. When FORCERT is successful in these areas, it can gradually expand to cover other areas in PNG.

The FORCERT target areas: