Management of the Amazonian Rain Forest (Promanejo)

Project BRA/98/009 -- Start Year: 1998; Approved Budget: US$583,783; End Year: 2003; Implementing Agent: NEX (National Execution Related Projects); Executing Agent: IBAMA – Brazilian Institute for the environment and renewable resources.

Project background and rationale:One third of the tropical rainforests of the world are located in the Amazonian region. The creation of regional development agencies, the implementation of regional projects, and the construction of highways and other infrastructures, have boosted economic growth in the area, which has been characterized by "waves" of unorganized selective exploitation of natural products such as rubber latex, cocoa, jute and guarana, with high collateral costs in terms of environmental and social degradation. In particular, this exploitation has reduced the diversity of the tropical rainforest, with dramatic consequences for the whole ecosystem of certain areas and it is estimated that only less than one percent of wood production comes from areas where sustainable exploitation is practiced. This project is addressed specifically at reducing unsustainable wood exploitation and is part of a broader policy developed by the Brazilian Government, aimed at the improvement of the quality of life of the population living in Amazonia, through sustainable economic growth, the full exploitation of the natural and cultural potentialities of the area and the internalization and better distribution of income.

Project development goal: This project aims to establish a technical and scientific basis necessary for the elaboration of public policies in order to reduce the offer of products of predatory origin and to increase the offer of products coming from areas where sustainable management is practiced.

Project immediate objectives and expected outputs: The strategy pursued by this project consists mainly in the development of pilot experiences aimed at educating the different segments involved in woodland exploitation, and can be divided in four components:

1. To sustain the formulation of public policies and to provide information necessary to the development of management, monitoring and control systems;

2. To propitiate the development of innovative and sustainable management systems of wood exploitation;

3. To develop, test and implement an integrated pilot system of monitoring and control of the use of the woodland resources;

4. To sustain the management of natural resources in the Tapajos National Forest.

At the end of this project, it is hoped that the percentage of wood production of sustainable origin will grow from the current 1% to a value between 5 and 10%.

Contact details: Promanejo BR-319, Km 01, Rua Ministro João Gonçalves de Souza, s/nº, Distrito Industrial, 69.075-830 Manaus, AM Brazil