The current report was compiled by the FAO Regional Office for Near East and North Africa (NENA) and is aimed at providing member countries with a source of reliable and timely data on the status of forest resources in the region and supporting them in their evidence-based decision-making and planning for the development of the forestry sector. Most of the NENA region falls within the subtropical climatic domain, but it spans an area that ranges from a tropical climatic domain in Mauritania, the Sudan and Yemen to a temperate domain in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

This book examines the global campaign to end hunger and malnutrition. Focus is placed on the work of the United Nations which has led international efforts to improve food security in the world’s poorest countries. The book first reviews the long-term project to establish access to safe, sufficient, and nutritious food as a universally recognized human right. This is followed by separate chapters that examine the nature and central causes of food insecurity in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. These chapters also review the contemporary work of three United Nations agencies – the World Food Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Fund for Agricultural Development – in providing both food aid and food assistance to each region of the developing world. This includes the provision of emergency food aid in response to natural disaster and civil conflict, as well as longer-term food assistance to promote agricultural productivity, advance rural development, and preserve natural environments. The concluding chapter considers ways to strengthen food aid and assistance in the years to come, with many of the recommendations advanced reflecting lessons learned from the actual experience of food aid and assistance described in this book.

Building on data that is more comprehensive and reliable than ever before, covering 234 countries and territories, the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2015 shows encouraging signs of improved forest management and a global slowdown in deforestation. However these trends need to be strengthened, especially in countries that are lagging behind.

The role of the forest in countries’ efforts to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are widely recognized. To maximize the contribution of forests to the SDGs, a workforce trained in forestry and a broad range of other forestrelated disciplines are needed as are widespread public knowledge and understanding of forest topics. However, recent literature highlights concerns that forest education is often not meeting the fast-changing needs of the labour market and the importance of forests and of forest managers and policymakers is often under-appreciated. The scope of this report covers education and training related to forests, trees outside forests and other wooded land (i.e. natural forests, forest plantations, woodlands, agroforests and urban forests). It includes education delivered through programmes of forestry and forest sciences as well as programmes of broader scope, (e.g. natural resources management, environmental sciences). It covers all levels of formal education: primary, secondary, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and universities and colleges (UC). This report reveals awareness of some overarching actions that would benefit forest education, including ameliorating a negative public image of professional forestrelated jobs and careers; developing better collaboration between educational institutions, the forest sector (private and public) and the general public; improving demographic diversity in the post-secondary student population; and strengthening digital readiness at all levels of education. The data collected by global survey on forest education supplemented by the six regional consultations represent a wealth of current information on the status and needs in forest education.

Nearly three years ago, world leaders agreed to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the central framework for guiding development policies throughout the world. This edition of The State of the World’s Forests is aimed at enhancing our understanding of how forests and their sustainable management contribute to achieving several of the SDGs. Time is running out for the world’s forests: we need to work across sectors, bring stakeholders together, and take urgent action. The State of the World’s Forests 2018 identifies actions that can be taken to increase the contributions of forests and trees that are necessary to accelerate progress towards the SDGs. It is now critical that steps be taken to work more effectively with the private sector, and the informal forest sector must be transformed in order to bring broader economic, social and environmental benefits. Seventy years ago, when FAO completed its first assessment of the world’s forest resources, the major concern was whether there would be enough timber to supply global demand; now we recognize the greater global relevance of our forests and trees. For the first time, The State of the World’s Forests 2018 provides an assessment of the contribution of forests and trees to our landscapes and livelihoods. The purpose of this publication is to provide a much wider audience with an understanding of why forests and trees matter for people, the planet and posterity.

Since 1946, FAO regularly monitors the world's forests through Global Forest Resources Assessments. The mandate to carry out these assessments stems both from the basic statutes of FAO and the Committee on Forestry (COFO). Divided into nine chapters, the publication covers the following topics: the extent of forest resources; biological diversity; forest health and vitality; productive functions of forest resources; protective functions of forest resources; socio-economic functions; progress towards sustainable forest management.