The introduction of newly established National Forestry Monitoring System (NFSM) will help track and report changes in Samoa’s lush green tropical forests.

This new monitoring system is a significant step forward for Samoa in managing forestry abiding to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Samoa's Forestry Division – in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) – held a two-day workshop and training to introduce stakeholders to the newly established National Forestry Monitoring System (NFMS) and Forest Reference Level (FRL) in Samoa. 

The NFMS will enable Samoa to track and report changes in forest cover and forest carbon stocks, contributing to sustainable forest management and reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.

 The workshop was attended by over 30 stakeholders from various sectors, and three sessions were held to discuss the NFMS and progress made in Samoa's National Forest Monitoring. 

The NFMS is being implemented by MNRE Forestry Division with financial and technical support from the FAO Subregional Office for the Pacific (FAO SAP). The MNRE Forestry Division and FAO aim to establish a robust and reliable NFMS that meets international standards.

More than 30 stakeholders from the government, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), academia, regional organisations and the private sector attended the workshop on Monday, 

Moafanua Tolusina Pouli, ACEO for Forestry at MNRE, underlined the significance of developing an NFMS and FRL for Samoa.

"NFMS will provide critical data to show that Samoa is reducing emissions, especially with initiatives such as the Samoa Two Million Tree Campaign and similar projects," he said.

"Open Foris is a set of free, open-source tools developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations that allows users to collect, analyze, and share data on forest and land use.

"The tools provided will provide satellite imagery and analysis for forest monitoring  for field data collection, and Earth Map, which combines satellite imagery and field data to create detailed map of forest cover and land use."

The establishment of the NFMS is an important step for Samoa in managing its forests and meeting its commitments under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Forests in Samoa cover approximately 80 per cent of the land area and provide important ecosystem services, including water regulation, soil conservation, and carbon sequestration and with the successful completion of these training sessions.

Samoa is well on its way to building a strong foundation for the NFMS and ensuring the sustainable management of its forests for years to come.