WWF Finland – International Development Programme

PartnershIP rePort

2017

Partnership Programme Report 2017 to Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, copyright WWF 2017.

Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) with infant at the Gunung Leuser National Park, Indonesia.Photo: Gita Defoe.

rIGhts, resPonsIBILItIes anD resoUrCes– PreserVInG natUre For the WeLL-BeInG oF FUtUre GeneratIons

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BFUC BufferZoneUserCommitteeBWI-NAC BuildingandWoodWorker’sInternational

NepalAffiliateCommitteeCAWUN ConstructionandAlliedWorkers’Union

inNepalCBAPU CommunityBasedAnti-PoachingUnitCBFM CommunityBasedForestManagementCBO CommunityBasedOrganizationCCRO CustomaryRightsofOccupancyCEAI CoastalEastAfricaInitiativeCFCC CommunityForestCoordination

CommitteeCFUG CommunityForestUserGroupCITES ConventiononInternationalTradein

EndangeredSpeciesofWildFaunaandFlora

CNI ConfederationofNepaleseIndustriesCSO CivilSocietyOrganisationCUPPEC CentralUnionofPainters,Plumbers,

ElectroandConstructioninNepalDFNRNR DirectorateofNaturalResourcesof

ZanzibarandNonRenewableResourcesDFRS DepartmentofForestResearchandSurveyDIP DetailImplementationPlanEAC EastAfricanCommunityERPD EmissionsReductionsProgramme

DocumentFMU ForestManagementUnitFPAN FamilyPlanningAssociationofNepalFSC ForestStewardshipCouncilGEF7 GlobalEnvironmentFacilityHCVF HighConservationValueForestHCV HighConservationvalueHRBA Humanrights-basedapproachHSAP HydropowerSustainabilityAssessment

ProtocolHWC HumanWildlifeConflictIRMC IntegratedRiverManagementCommitteeIUCN InternationalUnionforConservationof

NatureIWT IllegalWildlifeTradeKCFCF KenyaCoastalForestConservationForumKLHS StrategicEnvironmentalAssessmentKNP KazirangaNationalPark(India)KSK DistrictStrategicAreas(Indonesia)LHI LivingHimalayasInitiativeLUP LandUsePlanMCDI MpingoConservationandDevelopment

Initiative

aBBreVIatIons anD aCronyms MFA MinistryforForeignAffairsofFinlandMGV MyGakidhVillage–program(Bhutan)MJUMITA MtandaowaJamiiwaUsimamiziwa

MisituTanzaniaMoU MemorandumofUnderstanding

(agreement)MPRC Multi-PurposeResourceCenterMRV MonitoringReportingandVerificationsNGO Non-GovernmentalOrganisationNGOFION NGOFederationofIndigenousofNepalNPPC NationalPlantProtectionCentre

(Bhutan)ODA OfficialDevelopmentAssistancePES PaymentsforEcosystemServicesPFD ProgrammeFrameworkDocumentPHE Population,HealthandEnvironmentPPMS ProjectandProgrammeManagement

StandardsRBM Rights-basedmanagementREDD ReducingEmissionsfromDeforestation

andforestDegradationRIC REDDImplementationCentreSADC SouthernAfricanDevelopment

CommunitySASK TheTradeUnionSolidarityCentreof

FinlandSDG SustainableDevelopmentGoalsSHL SacredHimalayanLandscapeShNP ShuklaphantaNationalPark(Nepal)SIDA SwedishInternationalDevelopment

CooperationAgencySRH SexualandreproductiveHealthTAL TeraiArcLandscape(Nepal)TAP TechnicalAdvisoryPanelTMJ Tinjure-Milke-JaljaleTNRF TanzaniaNaturalResourceForumTRAFFIC TheWildlifeTradeMonitoringNetworkUFWG UgandaForestWorkingGroupUWICER UgyenWangchuckInstitutefor

ConservationandEnvironmental Research

WASH Water,SanitationandHygieneWCCB WildlifeCrimeControlBureauWRA WaterRiskAssesmentWWF-CEAI WWF-CoastalEastAfricaInitiativeWWFGEF WWFGlobalEnvironmentfacilityVNRC VillageNaturalResourcesCommitteeYDF YouthDevelopmentFund(Bhutan)

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taBLe oF ContentsaBBreVIatIons anD aCronyms 4

exeCUtIVe sUmmary 6

ProGress In Partner CoUntrIes 8 EastAfricaRegionalForestProgramme 9 Indonesia,Borneo 13 LivingHimalayas 21 Bhutan 24 Nepal 27

BUILDInG GLoBaL resPonsIBILIty In FInLanD 35 Reducingtheecologicalfootprint 36 Learningforchange 37 Engagingpeopleinconservation 38

InteGratIon oF Cross-CUttInG oBjeCtIVes 41 Inclusiveconservation 42 EnsuringClimatesustainability 43 eFFeCtIVe manaGement For resULts 44

FInanCIaLs 47 Financialmanagement 48 Financialsummary2017 48

annexes 51

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GloballyWWFworkedhardin2017tostreamlineandfocusournumerousprioritiesintonineglobalthematicfocusareas,socalled“Practices”,withnewleadersandclearstrategiesinplace.AsaresultofthisprocessallWWFofficesaroundtheworldarefocusing theirwork to supportglobalgoalsunderForests,Oceans,Wildlife,Food,ClimateandEnergyandFreshwater.Inaddition,toreducetheecologicalfootprintofhuman-kindand the threats to environment,WWFwill furthermoreworkwithcross-cutting themesofFinance,MarketsandGovernance.With the re-organizingoftheWWFnetwork,theaimistobeevenmoreeffective,focusedandimpactfulin thefaceofgrowingenvironmentalthreats.

Climatechangeisbecomingrealityanditsimpactcanbewitnessedaroundtheworld.In2017,devastatinghurricanesstormedinUSandtheCaribbeancausinghugedam-agetopeopleandsocieties.Similarly,severeforestfiresinCaliforniathreatenedbothpeopleandtheirlivelihoodsaswellastheenvironment.SouthAsiafloodskilledthou-sandsofpeopleleavingevenmorehomeless.GloballyCO2emissionsarestillincreas-ingwhiletheexploitationofnewoilfieldsisstillbeingplanned–evenintheArctic.However,climatechangehasbecomeatopconcernintheglobalpoliticalagendaandthepriceofrenewableenergy,insomeinstances,isalreadycompetitivewithfossilfuels.WiththeexceptionoftheU.S.President(butnottheentireU.S.population) theworldremainscommittedtotheParisClimatetargetsandbeyond.

In2017wildlifespeciesarestillfightingextinction,suchastheVaquitaandtheSu-matranrhino,whichareonthebrink.ButakeycountrylikeChinaistakingboldac-tionstoprotectnature,perhapsmostsignificantlybydecidingonacompleteclosureofitsdomesticivorytrade,whichcameintoeffecton31December2017.Apotentiallife-changerforelephants,whichWWFandmanyothershavesostronglysupported.

Globally therewereseveralsignificantconservationsuccesseswhereWWFplayed animportantrole.Long-termfunding(BhutanforLife)forBhutan’sprotectedareas’systemsecuredover twomillionhectaresofnature in this extraordinary country. AsuccessfulcampaignreversedtheBrazilianPresident’sdecisiontoopentheAma-zonprotectedareastomining–thegreatestattackontheAmazoninover50years.And theBelize government passed a law that puts an end to all possibility of oilexplorationinitswaters,alandmarkdecisioninmarineconservation.Thehealthofthereefwasdeemedmoreimportantthantheprospectofanoileconomy.

InWWFFinlandyear2017wastimefornewboldactionstowardsmoresustainabledevelopment.Inearly2017WWFFinlandpublishedaMeatGuidewhichgivescon-sumersinformationabouttheglobalecologicalimpactsoffoodandspecificallymeatconsumption.Theguidehelpsconsumertochoosealternatives formeatandguid-ancehowtoshifttowardssustainablediets.TheguideandextensivecommunicationarounditprovidedinformationandinsightonhowmeatconsumptioninFinlandisconnectedtotheglobalenvironmentalthreatslikedeforestationwhichisinfluencingthemassivebiodiversitylosscalledsixthextinction.In2017WWFFinlandtogetherwithAaltoUniversityandotherFinnishstakeholderslaunchedFinnishWaterStew-ardshipCommitment(vesivastuusitoumus)whichhasbeenadoptedalreadynowbysomeFinnishcompaniesandwasawardedas“NewApproachoftheyear”inNationalSustainableDevelopmentmeeting.Severalotherinnovativeandeffectiveconserva-tion approacheswere launched in 2017which are described in theWWFFinlandannualreport(Annex2).

exeCUtIVe sUmmary

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TheInternationaldevelopmentteamtogetherwithcolleaguesinFinlandandpartnersintheSouthdevelopedanew4-yearprogramme,whichMinistryforForeignAffairsofFinlandapprovedinearly2018.ThedevelopmentofthenewprogrammeinvolvedextensiveamountofWWFFinland’sexperts’timeandknowledge.Thepartnercoun-trieshadalreadyexistingstrategiesandprogrammeswhichwereusedasabasisfortheprogrammewhichmeantthatthecreationandfinalizationoftheprogrammeap-proachcouldbedoneinFinland.Thisenabledpartnerstocontinueeffectiveimple-mentationof2017workplans.Year2017wasanadditionalfundingdecisionfromMFAforoneyeartocontinuePartnershipprogramme2014-2016.

In2017WWFFinland’spartnershipprogrammereachedapproximately100000ben-eficiaries,atleast50%ofthemwomen.Thesepeoplewereengagedinmanagingandconservingcommunityforests,whichprovidevarioussocial,economicandecosystembenefitsandservices for them.Forestsaswell asvariousagriculturaland livestocksupport activities improved also people’s food security. In 2017we supported alsoover20nature-basedsmall-scaleenterpriseswhichcreate incomeandemploymentopportunities for the localpeoplewhile reducing thedependencyonunsustainableforestutilization.Over5000peoplebenefitteddirectlyfromclimatechangeadapta-tionsolutionsinNepalwhichagainin2017wasfacedwithseverenaturaldisasterasheavyfloodstormentedthesouthernpartsofthecountryforseveralweeks.WWFhadtoalsoadapttotheshocksbysupportingthefloodvictims,bothpeopleandanimals.

WWFworkswithlocalcommunity-basedorganizationsandcivilsocietyorganizationstoreachthebeneficiariesandtoachieveourconservationobjectives.In2017throughthisprogrammewesupportedover60localorganizations,includingourWWFpart-nerofficestotakeanactiveroleontheircivilsocietynationallyandregionallyandtopromotesustainablenaturalresourcesmanagementandprotection.

Programmehasstrongfocusonprotectingandsustainablymanagingcommunityfor-ests,andin2017wewereabletobringadditional9000hectaresundercommunityownershipbringingthetotalamountofforestsundercommunitymanagementsince2014toover112000hectares.Furthermore,wewereabletosupportoneprivateforestcompanyinBorneotosecureFSC-certificationfortheirforestsconcessionsof45985hectares.AlsoinBorneo,WWFhashadasignificantroletosupportSintangdistrictgovernmenttoconductenvironmentalassessmentin781788hectaresofvaluablefor-estareas.Theaimof theanalysis is todecideontheDistrictStrategicAreaswhichwillbeconservedforbiodiversity,waterserviceandculturalheritagepurposes.Under theLivingHimalayasprogrammeWWFsupportedtheprocesswhere58525hectaresof valuable landscape inEasternNepalweredesignatedasnew conservationareascalledTinjure-Milke-JaljaleComplex.Alltheseprotectedforestareasprovideincomeandlivelihoodsfortheprogrammebeneficiariesandatthesametimetheforestshavecrucialroleonmaintainingwaterresources,regulatingclimate,andprovidinghabi-tatsforthreatenedspecies.

Alsoin2017WWFFinland’spartnercountriescontributedtoWWF’sglobalspeciesconservationwork.InBhutandoublingthetigerpopulationinManasNationalparkwas celebrated and inNepal our support helped tomaintain theZeroPoaching ofrhinosbyfacilitatingcommunity-basedantipoachingunits.TheproductionofVillienJäljillä -TV series aboutWWFFinland’s species conservationwork started in 2017withfirstfilmingtakinplaceinNepal.TheserieswillbehighlightingtheendangeredspeciesandWWF’sworktoprotectthem.

Theprogrammealsoreachedover20000youthandschoolchildrenthroughenvi-ronmental education campaigns and events such asEarthHour andWorldVillageFestivalboth inFinlandand inpartnercountries.Conservationminded,activeandinspiredyouthwillbetheresponsibledecisionmakersofthefuture,thereforeWWFseesthatinvestinginyouthiscrucialtoensuresustainabletomorrow.

ProGress In Partner CoUntrIes

Photo: WWF / Simon Rawles

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east aFrICa reGIonaL Forest ProGrammeIn2017,themainobjectiveoftheEastAfricaforestprogrammewastosupportthegovernmentsoftheEastAfricaregiontodevelopnational,bilateralandregionalactionplansfortheimplementationoftheZanzibardeclaration.Thegoalofthiswork is to tackle illegal logging and timber trade in the regionwhile increasinglegalandsustainabletradeintimberandforestproductsthroughlocallycontrolledcommunityforestry.WorkfollowstheRegionalForestProgrammeStrategicPlan2016-2020.During2017,theworkfocusedonpolicyandadvocacyworkonwitharegionalscaleaswellasongroundworkmainlyinTanzania.National,bilateralandregionalhigh-levelgovernmentmeetings focusingon tackling illegal timbertradeintheregionhavebeenaneffectivewaytogetgovernmentstoagreeonjointactionsandcooperation.Atotalof46712people(ofwhich24421women)from 17villagesinRuvumalandscapeinsouthernTanzaniabenefittedfromvariouspro-grammeactivities,suchas forestmanagementandgovernancetrainings,during2017.Inaddition,morebeneficiaries,includinggovernmentandCivilSocietyOr-ganizations(CSO)representativeswerereachedthroughregionalworkinfivedif-ferentEastAfricancountries.InadditiontoMinistryforForeignAffairsofFinland(MFA)funding,theregionalforestprogrammealsoreceivedsupportfromSwedishInternationalDevelopmentCooperationAgency(SIDA)withthemainobjectivetostrengthencivilsocietyandrightsbasedapproach.

Supporting community forestry for conservation and improved livelihoods

In2017,programmemanagedtoincreasetheareaundersustainableforestmanage-mentby1374hectaresforNyamwagevillagelandforestreserveinRufijidistrictinsouthernTanzania.Todate,withdirectMFAcontributiontheareaundersustain-ableforestmanagementhasreachedto96793hectaresinthefourDistrictsofRufiji,Kilwa,TunduruandNamtumboinTanzania.Since2014withmultipledonorsup-port,theareaunderVillageLandForestReservesisnow441351hectares.

InTanzania,tenvillagesinRuvumalandscapegeneratedrevenueamountingaround104000eurosfromsustainabletimbersalesof864m3providingsocioeconomicbenefitsto26563people(13846women)inTunduru,KilwaandRufijidistricts.InKilwa,therevenuesearnedfromtheseharvestshavebeenusedtoinvestinbirthingkitsfor51expectingmothers,finishingforVillageOfficeandVillageGuestHouse,early burning, patrol gears, subsistence forVillageNaturalResourcesCommittee(VNRC)membersduringforestpatrols,purchasetransportationfacilities(Motor-bikes),healthinsuranceandaFirstAidkitforVillageNaturalResourcesCommittee(VNRC)members.InTunduru,therevenueshavebeenusedtobuildVillageOfficeinNgapa,purchasemotorbikesfortheVNRCforforestpatrols,healthinsurance,train-ingnewVNRCmembers,costsofforestpatrolteamandforharvestingsupervision.AndinRufiji therevenuehasbeenspent tosupport forestmanagementactivitiesbyVNRC.Also,atotalof90CertificatesofCustomaryRightsofOccupancy(CCRO)havebeenissuedinRuvumalandscapefollowingthecompletionofLandUsePlan(LUP)andtrainingoncustomaryrights.

Withtheaimtobringtogetherbusinesspartnersinforestindustrytodiscusswaysofpromotinginvestments,enhancingforestgovernance,conservationandrewardtocommunityforests,alandscapeinvestmentforumwasorganizedbyWWFinTan-zania.Theforummetitskeyobjective,whichwastoidentifyandengagetheprivate

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sectoranddeterminethepotentialsupportfortheestablishmentofprivatesectorpartnershipswithrespecttothesaleoftimberfromthecurrentlysupportedVil-lageLandForestReservesinRuvumalandscape.

Improving forest governance and law enforcement

Asaresultfromstrengtheningforestgovernanceindifferentlevels(national,dis-trict,village)about9reportedincidenceofillegalcuttingoftreestothedistrictau-thorityandpolicewerereported.ThreecaseswereprosecutedatTunduruprimarycourtusingcommunitybylawsandresultedintotwojudgementsthatleadtoimpris-onmentandfiningonforestcrimes.Empoweringthelocalcommunitybasedgroupsandnetworks is one of the bestways of bringing about accountability of naturalresourcemanagementinstitutionsatbothlocalandnationallevel.LocalnetworksbasedinTundurudistricthavebeenverypro-activeinreportingforestillegalitiestohigherauthoritiesandmobilizingcommunitiestotakeactionsagainstirresponsiblevillageleaders.

RecordsfromRuvumalandscapeindicatethatthereisanincreaseofabout30%intheissuedpermitstoharvesttimberfromlegalsources.ThesepermitsareissuedbyDistrictForestManagersandDistrictForestOfficersinRuvumalandscape.Thisisonewaytoensurethatharvestinghappensonlyinareaswithpropermanagementandharvestingplans.

Theperformance of village land and forest co-management institutionshas beenimproved followingcapacitybuilding to207 (70women) representatives from10villages.Throughtrainingsongoodgovernancethemes,specificallyonconductingpatrol,financialmanagement,runningquarterlymeetingsandadvocacyskills,goodgovernancehasbeenstrengthened.Communitieshavebeenempoweredtoadvocatefor theirrights in forestand landmanagement, increasepatrolrates,andat leastoneVNRCmeetingpervillagehasbeenconducted.CommunitiesinTunduruhavebeenfacilitatedtodevelopsimplecommunityconservationprojectsandconnecttofundinginstitutions.

Priortrainingshavealsoresultedinimprovedfinancialaccountingprocessesforrev-enuegeneratedfromforestinfourVNRCsandtwolocalcommunitynetworks.Theaccountingbooksareproperlyfilled,andfinancialreportsareclosedmonthlyandquarterly.Ithasbeenobservedthatcombiningauditingandgovernancemonitoringis effective tool for improvingvillage forest governance.Village leadersandcom-munitiesseemtobemoreattentivetoauditreportsnowadays.Auditissuescompelthevillageleaderstotakeactionsontheirmisconducts.Auditandgovernancescoreswereobservedtobeveryimpressivesimplemeansofmeasuringtheperformanceofvillagegovernments.

In Madagascar, 61 people from various entities have their knowledge improvedand capacities strengthened on several areas related to Convention on Interna-tional Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) imple-mentation through training of agents involved in the control of exploitation,transport, trade and exportation of precious woods, and on practical identifi-cation methods of species with basic equipment such as flash LED magnifiersand cutters. And for the first time in Madagascar, a manual for the identifica-tion of 11 traded wood species was produced in collaboration with the national CITESscientificauthority.Also,thecooperationandcommunicationsbetweendif-ferentministriesandorganizationshasimprovedaroundCITESimplementation.

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InTanzania,thecompletesetofNationalForestsstewardshipstandardshavebeenapprovedbytheForestStewardshipCouncil(FSC)Internationalpolicycommittee.InNovember2017,theFSCInternationalCommitteerequestedminorjustificationtoStandardsandre-submittedtoFSCInternationalon30thNovember2017.Publi-cationisexpectedtohappenin2018.

Bilateral and regional cooperation among Eastern African governments to tackle illegal logging and trade

TheSteeringCommittee(orForestDirectorsForum)undertheZanzibarDeclara-tionwasofficiallylaunchedinNairobion13thApril2017inajointmeetingwiththefivemembercountries.Someactionsagreed inthemeetingare;proposal toCITES for initiating repatriation arrangements under Zanzibar Declaration fortimberconsignmentsconfiscatedatthedestinationortransitcountrywithintheregion, development of bloc timber trade agreements betweenmembers of theDeclaration andChina, and interest to pursue theGlobal Environment Facility(GEF7)fundingopportunitywithsupportfromWWF.WWF-TanzaniafacilitatedtheForests andBeekeepingDivisionofTanzaniaMainlandand theDirectorateofNaturalResources ofZanzibar andNonRenewableResources (DFNRNR) todevelopaninitialconceptnotetoGEF7withatargetfundingofUS$14.5MillionthroughfundingfromWWF-UK.Inthesamemeeting,apublicationbyTRAFFIC(theWildlifeTradeMonitoringNetwork),called“OverviewofthetimbertradeinEastandSouthernAfrica”waspublishedanditwasusedasabasisforthediscus-sions.

Laterin2017,the5thEastAfricaTimberTradeStakeholdersForumwasorganizedinZanzibar.InthismeetingthemembersoftheZanzibardeclarationhadopportunitytoreflectontheirnationalperformanceanddeveloplong-termactionplansforthenext3-5yearsthatwouldformthebasisforgovernmentstoapplyforGEF7funding.Theforumbroughttogether43participants(9Female)rangingfromprivatesector(8),governmentagencies(22),NGOs(12)andregionalbodies(1).Theprivatesectorattendedincludedthoseinvolvedinforest-basedessentialoilbusiness(e.g.ArborOil) and timberexports (e.g.SoundandFairLtd.) fromcommunity-basedenter-prises, and those investing in tree-growers schemese.g.UgandaTimberGrowersAssociation,AsanteCapitalEPZofCostalKenya.

WWFalsoparticipatedinthe4thChina-AfricaForestgovernanceplatforminPemba,Tanzania.InthismeetingitwasfurtherexploredwhatistheroleandopportunitytoengageZanzibarandotherislandsstates(e.g.Seychelles)ondiscussionfortransitroutes and repatriationof timberunder theZanzibardeclaration.Also, itwas anopportunitytoengagewithgovernmentrepresentativesfromDemocraticRepublicofCongoandZambiatoexplorelinkswithCentralAfricaandpursuetheirintereststojoinZanzibarDeclaration.ThisresultedinameetingbetweenTanzania,DRCandZambiainFebruary2018forfurtherdiscussions.

Bilateralmeetings,discussionsandactionplandevelopmenttotackleillegallog-gingandtradeweresupported for instancebetweenTanzaniaandMozambiqueandwithKenyaduring2017.ThefocusbetweenMozambiqueandTanzaniahasdealtthecustomsoperationsbetweenthecountriesandhowtoimprovecoopera-tion.WithKenya,TanzaniaandMozambique,theauthoritieshaveagreedtoin-cludediscussionsofillegaltimberandcharcoaltradeaspartoftheagendawithintheir district security committees and instructed the District Forest Managers toprovidequarterly reports and seek supportwherepossible.Thisprocesswill

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ensure political support from theDistrict Commissioners andwill continue fornextreportingperiodforKenyaandMozambique.

In2017,WWFalsoworkedcloselywiththeEastAfricanCommunity(EAC)andtheSouthernAfricanDevelopmentCommunity (SADC).With theEAC, supportwasgiveninforestpolicydevelopmentforthememberstates.WithSADC,are-viewprocesswasinitiatedfortheSADCForestProtocol.ThereporthasoutlinedafewactionstobepursuedbytheprogramincludingcurrentlimitationsonCITESdiscussionsontimberinSouthernAfricaandtheneedformanagementregimeofseizedtimberconsignments.

Supporting civil society organizations to tackle illegal trade in timber

During2017, theWWFoffices infiveEastAfricancountrieshavepartneredwithandsupportedfinanciallyandtechnicallynineCivilSocietyOrganizations.TheseCSOshave important role in supporting communities in implementationof sus-tainablenaturalresourcesmanagementandpromotionofgoodgovernance,furthertheyhaveimportantroleininfluencinggovernmentsthroughpolicyadvocacyandlobbying. In Tanzania,WWF supportedMpingoConservation andDevelopmentInitiative (MCDI),Mtandaowa JamiiwaUsimamiziwaMisitu Tanzania (MJU-MITA)andTanzaniaNaturalResourceForum(TNRF)InUgandaWWFsupportedtheUgandaForestWorkingGroup(UGFWG),inKenyatheKenyaCoastalForestConservationForum(KCFCF)andinMozambiqueNationalCSOsAllianceofMo-zambique.WiththeextensionoftheprogrammetoUgandaandMadagascar,fourforumsengagedontacklingillegaltradeintimberandpromotingsustainableforestmanagementhavebeenaddedinthesetwocountries.Trainingonforestgovern-ancehasbeenprovided toCSOs includingWWFstaff. Itwasanopportunity forthemtolookindepththenewforestpolicyandtheproposedforestlaws.WorkingwithCSOs across the regionhas shown that development ofCSOs’ capacity is alongprocessandonethatrequirepatience,consistencysupport,long-termfund-ingcommitmentandequalpartnership.Continuedsupportandgoodrelationshipwith, CSOs alongwithGovernment agencies and private sector has enabled theprogrammetomeetsomeofitsobjectivesthisyear.

Lessons learned, challenges and adaptive management

Theprocesstomakecommunityforestsustainablecantakelongbutoncelocalcommunitiesarebeginningtoreceivemonetarybenefitsfromforesttheywillre-specttheirforestsandtaketheirowneffortstoprotecttheforest.ThisiscaseforvillagessuchasNanjirinjiwhereWWFandpartnershaveinvestedfornearly10yearstoapointnowthatthecommunityisbeginningtoinvestinotherlong-termbusinessestoensurestableinfinancialresources.TheexperiencefromNanjirinjioffersagood lessontootherareas (Tunduru,RufijiandNamtumbo)whicharestill at infancy stage in community forestry enterprises.ThenewMFA funding(2018-2021)willconcentrateontheinfantryareastosupportamoresustainablebusinessapproach.

CommunityBasedForestManagement(CBFM)notonlyhelpstocurbruralpov-erty andpromote sustainableuseof forests, but alsobrings about a varietyofotherpositiveoutcomesthatcross-cutmultipleSustainableDevelopmentGoals.The programme recognizes that linking conservation and social dimensions andwideningthe involvementofcommunities intheprogramcycle isvital for

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creating ownership and ensuring sustainability of program outcomes and im-pacts. Inorder to ensure that conservationoutcomes are linked to thehumanrights(e.g.landrights,forestuserights)ofthepeopledependentonnaturalre-sourcesincludingrightsofthosewithdisabilities,theprogrammeemployedtheuseofrights-basedmanagement(RBM)approachinsustainableforestmanage-mentinterventionse.g.theuseofTanzanianationalguidelinesinensuringequalrepresentationofvariousgroups (andgender) in forestmanagementdecision-makingprocess.

During the transition process of theWWF-Coastal East Africa Initiative (WWF-CEAI)anddesignoftheregionalforeststrategy,UgandaandMadagascarwereadd-edtotheoriginalCoastalEastAfricaInitiative(CEAI)geographicalfocus(Tanzania,KenyaandMozambique).ThiswasinresponsetoWWF-CEAImid-termevaluationandevidencefromanumberofregionalstudiesontheincreasinginter-regionalandintra-regionaltradeintimberacrossthefiveparticipatingcountries.Tofurtherre-spondtothischallenge,theprogrammehascontributedeffectivelytothedesignoftheWWF’sAfrica transformationalprojectwhichaims to address illegal trade intimberatPan-AfricanscalebybringingtogetherWWF’sregionalforestprogrammesfromEastern,SouthernandCentralAfrica.

TherewerelimitedfundsavailablefortheZanzibardeclarationimplementationatthegovernmentlevelastheagreementwassignedaftermostgovernmentbudgetshadbeenapproved(Kenya,UgandaandTanzania).InMadagascar,forexample,theCITESactionplanrequiredconsiderablefundingbutlittlewasimplementedduetolackoffundingallocationfromthegovernment.Insummary,ithasbeenchalleng-ingtoinfluencetheimplementationoftheCITESactionplanbecausetheavailableresourcescannotcoveralltheactionsasitisthecaseforTanzania(Zanzibar)andMadagascar.

Monitoring trips

InMarch2017AleksiHeiskanenandAnneTarvainenvisitedTanzania todiscussaboutthesituationoftheregionalforestprogrammeaspartofthevisittoTanza-niawherealsoameetingwasarrangedtoestablisharegionalIllegalWildlifeTrade(IWT)hub.TheconnectionbetweentheworkwhattheregionalforestprogrammehasdonetoaddressillegaltimbertradeinEastAfricahasclearconnectiontotheworkwhat thenewlyestablished IWThubwilldo toaddress the rapidlygrowingpoachingandIWT in the region.Thesupport for IWThubwasdecided tobe in-cludedtotheWWFFinlandnewPartnershipProgramme.

InDonesIa, BorneoDuring2017,WWFcontinued to support sustainablemanagementandconser-vationof themountain rainforests in theMuller-Schwanerarea inCentral andWestKalimantan,bycooperatingwithdistrictgovernments,localvillages,CSOsandtheprivatesector.WWFalsocontinuedtosupportthelocalcommunitiestoestablishalegalbasistomanagetheirforestandimprovetheiraccessandcontrolovertheforestandothernaturalresources.Inaddition,continuoussupporthasbeengivenforcommunitylivelihooddevelopmentmodels.Theprogramhasbeensuccessfulinensuringsustainablemanagementofgovernmentforestsviasupport

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todevelopingandimplementationofforestmanagementplans.Theplanisapre-requisitetoaccessimplementationfundfromthecentralgovernment.Also,withWWFsupport,aloggingcompanyhasreceivedFSCcertification,agloballyrecog-nizedcertificationschemeforsustainableforestmanagement.Equallyimportant,throughconsistentcapacitybuildingsupportfromWWF,thelocalcommunitiespresenting the indigenouspeopleDayaks, have gained skills and ability to run anadaptivemanagementsysteminscalingupthevalueofthecommodities(rub-ber,coffeeandorganiccrops)producedfromintheirownvillages.

Supporting sustainable forest management in government and private forests

AsaresultofearliersupportandcapacitydevelopmentfromWWF,twogovernmentForestManagementUnits(FMU),inGunungMasandMurungRayadistricts,arenow implementing sustainable forestmanagement activities independentlybasedonthedevelopedforestmanagementplans.TheyarenowalsoabletousethestatebudgettoimplementtheforestmanagementplansandarenolongerdependentonWWFsupport.ThisisaclearevidenceofpositiveimpactofWWFprogramme.Inaddition,inGunungMas,astherearenowofficialforestmanagementplansinplace,it’seasiertoattractnewdonors(i.e.USAID)togivestrategicsupportfortheimple-mentationoftheplans.

Asaresultofmulti-yearprocess,WWFhasassistedaprivateforestcompany,PT.GrahaSentosaPermai(GSP),tobeFSCcertified(45985Ha).Thefinalassessmentwasheldattheendof2016andthroughintensivesupportfromWWF,themanage-mentofthecompanywasabletorespondtoallmajorandminorcorrectiveactionsrequestsandcloseallfindingsandeventually tobe certifiedat theendofFebru-ary2017.WWF’scontributionstarted frombasicassessment in theearlyof2013andcontinuedwithcapacitybuildingactivities(workshop,trainings)andintensivesupportduringthemockassessmentaswellasuponthefinalassessmentheldby thecertificationbody.Thecompanyisexpectedtogainhighereconomicbenefitwith-outincreasingtheharvestinglevel,broadermarketaccessandbetterrelationswith thecommunitiesadjacenttotheirconcession.

Supporting village forest conservation and management

During 2017, throughWWF advocacy to the GunungMas District EnvironmentAgency,atleast20000euroswereallocatedandhasbeenspenttoconducttheHighConservationValueForest (HCVF) assessmentwithin village forest areas (HutanDesa)inHarowuandRanganHiranvillages.HCVassessmentwasaimedtoiden-tifythehotspotsofbiodiversityvaluesthatshouldbeconserved.Basedontheas-sessments,azoningplanwillbemadeinwhichcoreconservationzones,utilizationzonesandbufferzonesaredetermined.

In 2017, the total area of village forests also increased from 5 100 hectares to 12401hectaresthroughthelegalizationofRasauandJasavillageforests.Rasauvillagehasbeensplitintofournewautonomyvillagesanditisautomaticallysplit-tingtheproposedvillageforesttothefournewareas.However,duringthepublicconsultation attended by the representatives from theMinistry of EnvironmentandForestsandProvincialGovernment,thecommunitiesfromfournewvillageswantedtobe treatedasoneentitynamedas“KelingkangBersatu”.TheywillbemanagingtheunitoffourvillageforestsasoneinRasau.

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Supporting livelihood development and community enterprises

WWFfacilitatedTanjungvillagegovernmentandcommunitiestoestablishBUM-DES–avillageownedenterprise. It’sdesignedto legalizebusinessactivities thatcanutilizepublic funding fromvillagebudgetsaswellas improvepositionof thevillageandfarmerstodealwithmarkets.It’smanagedbythevillagegovernmenttorunmultiplebusiness,i.e.rubber,coffee,cocoa,horticulture,ecotourism,etc.FirstworkshopwasheldatTanjungvillagetoensurethatcommunitiesarehavinggoodknowledgeandunderstandingabouttheconcept.Inaddition,trainingandcapac-itybuildinghavebeensuccessfullyimplementedforthewomengroupsatTanjungvillage,particularlyonthedevelopmentofbakeryandothersmallscaleeconomicactivitiestosupportlivelihoods.InTanjungandHarowuvillages,somebudgethasalsobeendisbursedtosupportrubbercultivation(1380euros)andMicroHydroini-tiatives(10000euros).Thisfundingisreceivedfrompublicfunding(Indonesiataxpayers)andifthiscanbeincreasedgradually,thesustainabilityoftheprogrammecanbemaintained.InTanjungvillage,thetradingofhigh-qualityraw-materialrub-ber(BOKAR)hascontinuouslybeendonebythefarmergroupswhileatthesametimeeffortshavebeenmadetodiversifythecommodityproductiontoincludewildhoney,vegetablesandhome-basedpastry.

ByMarch2017,forthethirdtime,alocalfarmergroup(Gapoktan)successfullysold1tonofnaturalrubber(BOKAR)tothemarket.Abuyer,PTKirana,paid0,75eurosfor1kgofrubber.Thefarmergroupearnedapproximately759eurosintotal.Thereweresomechallengesmaintainingthequalitywhichledtothereductionofprice.Asanadaptivemanagement, theGapoktanwillminimize thisproblem in the fu-turebyseekingpossibilitiestohaveanagreementwithbuyersrelatedtotheproductqualitiesandspecificationandtoseekpossibilitygettingpurchase guaranteefromthebuyers.Inaddition,updatingpricesfrequentlytothefarmerswillalsominimizepotentialoffinancialloss,astheGapoktanwillhaveupdatedinformationrelatedtopriceswhentheycollectrubberfromthefarmers.

InBahitomvillage,CentralKalimantan,livestockprogramhasbeensetupbyutiliz-ingfundingfromdistrictgovernment(2100euros).WWF’srolehasbeentoprovidecapacitybuildingforthevillagegovernmenttobeabletoaccesstheprogram.WWFalsoensuredcommitmentfromtheRegenttosupportBahitomasamodelforor-ganicfarmingandagro-tourism.Bahitom-villagehasnowallocatedmoney(atleast2000eurosin2017withtheaimtoincreaseitto4800eurosin2018)tosupportpermacultureandagritourisminthevillage.

Cooperation through local civil society organizations

Cooperationwith local CSOs continued at community level inWest Kalimantan. AlocalpartnernamedKOMPASShasbeenappointedbytheprogrammetoconductastudyonetnobotanyinTanjungvillage.Thestudyisimportantforthecommuni-ties,sinceetnobotanyisoneoftheecosystemservicesthatbenefitsdirectlylocalpeo-ple,makingitoneofthemainreasonswhytheyshouldconservetheirvillageforests(HutanDesa).Theconservationofetnobotanyhasalsobeenacknowledgedbymostof the certification systems in Indonesiaashigh conservationvalue (HCV).LocalpartnershaveplayedimportantroleinsomeachievementssuchastheverificationoftheproposedvillageforestsRasauandJasa,byendofMarch2018.Also,rubberdevelopmentfacilitationandvillage-levellanduseplanning,havesuccessfullybeenimplementedincoordinationwithpartnerswithacommonvisionhowtomakeTan-jungvillageasanidealmodeltobedevelopedasagreenvillage.

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TheprogrammehasalsoactivelyparticipatedontheSocialForestryForuminWestandCentralKalimantan togetherwithotherNGOsacross theregionswhichhavecommonprogramsonsocialforestryissues.Asaresultofcooperationandcapacitytransfer,WWFseestheCSOpartnershaveimprovedtheircapacities;especiallyfortheCBOssuchasGapoktan,WomenGroupandvillageenterprisegroups.Theyworkis farmoreorganized through theestablishmentof farmergroups,knowing theirrolesandhavingimprovedtechnicalcapacities.

Supporting conservation through education and communication

Communicationprogramsaredeliveredtothestakeholdersthroughreports,booksand online social media. During 2017 one report was developed to explain pro-grammeinterventionsinTanjungvillageandthreebookswereproducedrelatedtotheprogramsimplementedinTanjungandHarowuvillagesuchasetnobotanyandcommunityengagementandvillageforest.Thesepublicationsweredisseminatedtotherelevantpartiessuchasgovernment,communitiesandgeneralpublictoincreaseawareness and knowledge on WWF interventions and community development.Communicationabouttheactivitiesandsuccessesis importantalsowhenseekingfundingfromdistrictandgovernmentandotherdonors.

In addition, WWF has encouraged youth participation in Murung Raya districtthrough students’ internship program on organic farming, in a partnership withvocationalschool.During2017,at least10studentswereparticipatinginthepro-gramme.WWFhasalsoorganizedtrainingsonEducationforSustainableDevelop-ment(20participants).

The aim of education has been to improve knowledge and technical skills of theteacherstoimplementtheprogrambyengagingstudentsandyouthandintensivelycommunicatingtheprogramwithlocalauthoritieswithinMurungRayaDistrictgov-ernment.WWFandBahitomvillagegovernmenthavebeenabletoconvenetheRe-gentofMurungRayatoestablishaspecialworkinggroupandsecureinitialfinancialresourcestodevelopandimproveagro-tourisminBahitomvillage.

Promoting the environmental services of forests

Environmentalservicessuchastraditional-medicalherbsarepivotaltobeconservedaslocalcommunityandindigenouspeoplehavebeenusingthoseproductsforgen-erations.Theimportanceisevenhigherforthepeoplelivingintheproximityandin forestswithoutsufficientaccess topropermedical facilities, suchashealthcarecenters.WWFhas,therefore,decidedtostartfocusingonthisanddocumentingthediversityofmedicalherbs.ThisfirststepwastakeninHarowuandTanjungvillages.InOctober2017,100bookswereprintedoutanddisseminatedtothestakeholderswhowereattendingtheHeartofBorneoTrilateralmeetinginTarakan,NorthKalim-antan.Thestudiesweredonetogetherwithlocalpeople.Medicalherbswereusedtoillustratetheimportanceoftheforestswhicharealsohabitatsandasourcefortheirtraditionallyusedspecies.Losingthenaturalhabitatmeanstheywillfacechallengestogetalternative,affordableandtraditionalcuresclosesttotheirhome.

Promoting sustainable land use planning through policy and advocacy

Inordertoensurethebuy-inoftheprograminitiativesbythelocalgovernment,byJuly2017,WWFperformedanintensiveadvocacyworktotheCentralKalimantanProvincialGovernment to issue aGovernorRegulation over the establishment of

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forestmanagementunits(FMUs)inCentralKalimantan.TheregulationcanbeseenasapoliticalcommitmentfromtheGovernortosupportsustainableforeststeward-shipwithintheprovinceaswellastoreplaceaformerregulationthathasexpiredduetothechangeofLaw.Accordingtotheregulation,33forestmanagementunits(FMUs)havebeenre-establishedandshouldbemanagedby18organizationsundertheCentralKalimantanProvincialGovernment.

Furthermore, by December 2017, Sintang District Government, facilitated byWWF, finalized the Technical and Scientific Assessment Report of the DistrictStrategicAreas(KSK)ofSerawaiandAmbalau(781788hectares,equalto10timesof Singapore) and completed its Strategic Environmental Assessment (KLHS).ThedesignationofDistrictStrategicAreasisaimedtoensurethattheforestareasand itsbiodiversitywhichprovides importantecosystemservices (watersupply,micro-climate,cultural identity forDayakpeople,etc.) tohumanwell-beingcanbeconserved.WWF,withMFAfunding,providedexpertstoassistSintangdistrictgovernment in thefieldassessment(HCVassessment,publicconsultations)anddocumentwriting.Thosedocuments(KLHSandtechnicalreports)aremandatorytobedevelopedprior to theestablishmentof theDistrictStrategicAreas.WWFseesthisworkcrucialduetostrategicpositionofSerawaiandAmbalausub-dis-trictsintheHeartofBorneoRegionandcorezonesofMullerareas,whichplays an importantroleaswaterregulator for itsdownstreamareassuchasPalangkaRayaandPontianak.Recently,basedonmeetingwithRegentofSintang,hehasreconsideredpermittingcoalminingwithinthisarea,followedbythesuggestionsof the KLHS, even though legallyminingwould be possible.WWF sees this as apositiveoutcomefromtheinfluencingprocess.

WWFIndonesiawasappointedasafocalpointtoleadanationalsocialforestryworkbyMinistryofeconomicaffairs.However,otherCSOsconsideredWWFisnotsuit-ableforthepositiongivenitsenvironmentalNGO.AsaresultofobjectionofWWF’sposition leading this work,WWF decided to step down and giving up the roles thecentralgovernmentwasoffering,andrecentlysignedMoUwasterminatedaswell.ThishasledWWFisnotpartofsocialforestrydevelopmentwhichhasbeenwellinformeddecisiontoleaveroomforotherNGOs.

Sustainable management of the Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park

WWFandtheBukitBakaBukitRayaNationalParkhaveworkedcollaborativelyonthebiodiversitysurveys,focusedontheinventoryofHornbillgroupspeciesinBela-banElaresort,Melawidistrict,WestKalimantan.Thesurveywaspartofthepark’sefforttodevelopasanctuaryforthehornbills,especiallyforthehelmetedhornbill(Rhinoplax vigil), which is classified as critical endangered species, according to the InternationalUnion forConservationofNature (IUCN).ThenationalPark ishomefor8outof13hornbillspeciesinIndonesia.AccordingtothelatestdatafromSpecialForestRangersinWestKalimantan,during2012-2017,atleast370hornbillbeakshavebeenconfiscatedfromillegaltrading.Ifthetrendremainsorcontinuetoincrease,itwillleadtothelocalextinctioninWestKalimantan.Thesurveywastakeninthesamelandscapewithorangutanreleaseprogramconductedbythepark’sau-thority.Thenextworkintheparkwill focusonhowtocarryoutfurtherresearchto helmeted hornbill and create opportunities to obtain financial benefits from theenvironmentalservicesprovidedbythenationalparks.

Byprovidingexpertiseandtechnicalassistance,WWFhascommittedtoassistthenational park authorities to develop community-based tourism that is integrated

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with research. Inaddition to thisprogram, thepark’sauthoritiesandWWFhavealsoconductedcapacitybuildingforcommunitiesandthepark’srangerstodevelopcommunity-basedecotourismatRantauMalamvillage,Serawai sub-district, Sin-tang.RantauMalamhasbeendevelopedasatouristdestinationfortrekkingactivi-ties,consideringtheappointmentBukitRayaasoneofsevensummitsinIndonesia.Inaddition,onevillagesituatedinthebufferzoneofthenationalpark,BelabanEla,hasalsobeendevelopedasfuturetouristdestination.WWFhassupportedthevil-lagethroughcapacitydevelopmentactivities.

Promoting sustainable small-holder oil palm production

HavingsuccessstoriesonsupporttosmallholderpalmoilfarmersatMeraraiVil-lage,WWFstartedareplicationprocessofthemodelinotherdistricts.Melawiwaschosenas targeteddistrictdue to itsposition in theHeartofBorneoareaandasthewatercatchmentareaforthecities.Inaddition,MelawialsosharesboundarieswithSintang.Both,inMelawiandSintang,palmoilplantationshavebeenrapidlyexpanding by the corporations, leaving out local people of this development andmarginalized.

WWF carried out a baseline assessment to identify the current situation of thesmallholderpalmoil farmers in theregion.Theresults reviled that theareaofplantationsisexpectedtogrowtonear250000hectaresintotal.Theareaisoper-atedby16companies,bothprivatesectorandsmallholders.There isveryweakofficialownershipdeterminedwiththesmallholderplantationssomehavingnoevidenceofownership.Noneofthesmallholdersstudieddidnothavetheofficialpermittodosmallscaleplantations.Duetolackofknowledge,someofthefarm-ersweredoingfarmingalsointheforestareas.Thesmallholderfarmersareun-organized,managingscatteredplantationlandscape.Becauseoflackingthelegalevidence,theland-basedconflictsarepronetohappen,eitherbetweenthefarmersorwiththegovernmentduetoforestencroachment.Alsotheharvestingprocessesareconductedunproperlyandthequalityofproductionislowinmostfreshfruitbunches.

Thestudyshowedthatthereisurgentneedtodeveloppracticesandactionstobetakentosolvetheissuesraisedinthestudy.Thosefindingshavebeenfollowedupthroughproposal to theWWFnetworkandcurrently isbeingresponded throughfundingcommitmentfromWWFJapanworthto300000USD.

Lessons learned, challenges and adaptive management

Being focused on specific areas is farmore effective than scattering resources tomanyareas.Thiswasalsooneofthekeyfindingsoftheindependentevaluationdur-ingthemonitoringandevaluationoftheprojectattheendof2016.Theprogrammewasexpectedtoleadthechangeandshowcasetheconceptmodelofthegreenvil-lage development, safeguarding local/traditional peoples’ rights and ensure thegoodgovernanceprinciplesareinplace.Theprogramme,howeverisnotadressedtotaketasksandresponsibilitiesofthegovernment,insteadtodevelopdemostra-tionactivities/modelthatlatercanbeadoptedbythegovernmentinordertoensure thesustainabilityoftheprogramme.Focusofprogrammeresourceshasnowbeenput inTanjungvillageandhasmadetheworkmoreprogressive.Thenextstep ispromotingTanjung’sprogress, achievementsand impacts to thegovernmentandstakeholderstoseekopportunitiesfortheresultstobereplicatedandscaledupinotherareasbythegovernmentandsupportedbystakeholders.

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Theshortageoffundinginthegovernmentbudgethasledtotheminimumorevenat theworst case is theabsenceof interventions in theproject locations.Mostof thelocationschosenbytheprogrammearethoselocatedinthenear/closebytheforest.Thereasonwhywework there isbecauseofweneedtoempower themtominimizepotentialthreatstotheforestaswellasimprovingtheirwelfare,knowl-edgeandaccesstoinformation.However,logisticcostsoftheprojectarehighdue tothelocationsareveryremoteandtravellingconsideredveryexpensive,especiallyinCentralKalimantan.

Programme evaluation

MFAfundedprogrammeinBorneo(2014-2016)wasevaluatedinthespring2017byexternalevaluator.Mainpurposeoftheevaluationwastodeterminetheproject’sprogressandachievementsduringthe3rdphaseoftheproject(2014-2016)andalsotoprovidefeedbacktoimprovetheperformanceoftheprojectforthenextfundingperiod(2018-2021).Keyfindingsoftheevaluationwerepositiveandconstructive.

TheprojecthasstrongrelevancetoFinland’spolicyofdevelopmentprograms,con-servationprogramofWWFIndonesia, forestdevelopmentpolicyprogramatpro-vincialandnationallevel,thedevelopmentofdistrictandtheneedsofbeneficiaries.Mainstreaming some themes of Finland’s ODA policy poverty reduction, genderequality,andgoodgovernancewaslessvisible.Projectplanningtendstouseholisticapproach rather than comprehensive approach.Holistic approach requires enor-mousresourcesandlessappropriateforthisprojectduetolimitedresources.

Basically,projectoutputshavemetthedeterminedtargets.Untilthisevaluationisconducted,mostoftheresultsareashavegeneratedsomeeffectsbuthavenotshownanyimpactsthatrepresentedthelevelofprojectsustainability.Evaluationfinds,thatMuller Schwaner ecosystem resilience is influenced by land use optimization andproblemsofsocialwelfareimprovement.Threecriticalfactorsfortheresilienceare,landuseoptimizationrequiresstrongsupportfromgovernment,itsimplementationwillimprovetheeffectivenessofforestmanagementandprovidesufficientareawhichallocatedforsustainableandequitableforestmanagement.Themaingoalachieve-mentandprojectsustainabilitydependsontheextentofprojectcontributiontowardsimprovement or strengthening these three critical factors.Project interventiononthesethreecritical factors isstill in the initiationstageandneedstobecontinuedthroughmoresystematic,comprehensive,andparticipatoryplanningsystem.

The recommendations from the evaluation were discussed between Finland andIndonesiaprogrammecoordinatorsandusedas thebasiswhenplanningthenewMFAprogrammephase2018-2021.Theaimistostrengthenthesuccessfulinterven-tionsintheMuller-SchwanerlandscapewithinthenextfewyearstobeabletohavesustainableexitfortheMFAfundinginthatarea.NewinterventionswillbestartedinanotherlandscapeArabelahavingtheevaluationrecommendationsintegratedin thestrategicplanningofthefuturework.

Monitoring trips

ProgrammecoordinatorAleksiHeiskanenandHeadofInternationalDevelopmentteamAnneTarvainenvisitedIndonesiainMay2017.ThepurposeofthisvisitwastodojointplanningforthePartnershipProgramme2018-2021.Togetherin3daysworkshopWWFFinlandwithWWFIndonesiaexpertsandnewlyappointedWWFDirector for Kalimantan developed an approach for coming years. The gradual

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phasingoutofFinnishsupporttotheM-Sareawasdiscussedbyidentifyingtoeachinterventionapproach thepresent situationby reflecting to thedesired state andestimatingtimeandresourcestoreachthatlevelifnotreachedalready.Afterthisiswasdiscussedwhatisneededtomaintainthedesiredlevelandhowtheresourcesorcommitmenttomaintainthestatuscouldbesourcedfor.TheshiftoftheFinnishsupporttothenewlandscape,Arabelawasalsodiscussed.WWFIndonesiahasal-readysomeinterventionsintheareawherebiodiversityvaluesandindigenouscom-munities’livelihoodsarethreatenedbythetimberandpalmoilconcessions.

Itwasagreedthatincoming4yearsWWFFinlandwillbeusedtocreatelandscapeapproachtoArabelaareawhichalsoenablebetterfundraisingandcoordinationofWWFnetworkresourcesandsourcesoffundingit.IthasbeennotedasIndonesiaisnotanymoreOECD’sLeastDevelopedCountrylistwhichmightreducelevelofsupporttoWWFIndonesia’swork.ThishasbeennotedalreadyatWWFIndonesiafundraisingplanandthiswillbekeptinmindwhenpreparingtheArabelaLanscapeprogramme.WWFIndonesiahasverygoodexamplesofprivatesectorcooperationandfundingforconservationefforts.

MFArepresentativesSirpaRajasärkkä,WWFFinlanddeskofficerandSeniorAd-viseronForestsectorVesaKaarakkavisitedtheWWFFinlandprogrammeinMarch2017.Theirmainfindingswere,thatWWFisworkingconstructivelywithlocalpart-nersandimprovesthecapacityoflocalcommunitiesaswellassmallCSOsandlocalofficials.Availability of public fundinghas improved as a result of effective com-munitylevelcooperationandestablishmentofHutanDesas.Also,thegovernmenthasannounceditsownconservationtargetsandvisitedcommunitiesseemedtobedoing fairlywell,hence combinedwith increasedavailabilityofpublic funding, itneedstobereconsideredhowOfficialDevelopmentAssistance(ODA)fundingfitsinthisentity.

Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) in Kaja island, Central Kalimantan, Borneo, Indonesia. Orangutans have been released to island from orangutan rehabilitation center. Kaja island is situated near Palangka Raya in Rungan river. Photo: Petri Mulari / APU / WWF-Finland

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LIVInG hImaLayas In2017,WWFcontinuedtheworkwiththeregionalHimalayasprogrammewiththe aim to ensure the regional connectivity of both freshwater and terrestrialecosystems and addressing the threats from unsustainable infrastructure de-velopment in the region. To do that,WWFhas generated evidence to supportitsworkand influencepolicydecisionsandconservationoutcomesatbothna-tionalandtransboundarylevels.Throughtheprogramme,WWFhasbeenabletoprovidetheregionalplatformbothwithinWWFandamongkeystakeholdersin the region to share knowledge and information aswell as built capacities andfosternewpartnerships.

Protecting the mosaic of the East Himalayan ecosystems

Asaresultfrommulti-yearWWFlobbyingandsupport,58525hectaresofvaluableareasintheTinjure-Milke-Jaljale(TMJ)Complexinnorth-eastNepalhavebeendesignatedasnewconservationareas.During2017adedicatedtaskforceincoor-dinationofDeputyDirectorGeneral,EasternRegionalDirectorateofDepartmentofForestinNepalhasbeenformedalongwithtechnicalsupportfromWWFNepal.Thistaskforcehasbeenaddressedtostudyonthewildlifemovement,studyon themodalityofconservationapproachinTMJarea,toincludeneighboringareaswithin its spirit and to report it fornecessary actions forway forward towardsannouncingitasconservationarea.

Thefirstregionalspatialmappingexercise(knownasImpactMonitoring)usingsat-elliteimagerydatafortheperiod2000to2010toassesstheforestcoverandconnec-tivity(fragmentation)intheLivingHimalayasregionaswellashumanimpactforthedecadehasbeenunderdevelopmentandfinalizationforsometimenow.Itwasexpectedthatthestudywouldbefinalizedandpublishedin2017,butduetochal-lengesinaccuracyandlackoflatestsatellitedatatoconfirmtheresults,thestudyisstillpending.Oncefinalizedtheresultswillbeusedtosupportpolicyandadvocacyworkatnational,transboundaryandregionallevels.

Analyzing climate change impacts in Brahmaputra river basin

Themulti-yearresearchworkrelatedtohydrologyinitiatedintheBrahmaputrabasinintheBeki-ManasriversysteminAssam,India, ledbyWWFIndiaisthefirstofitskindinthebasinlevel.IthashelpedtodocumentinformationonBeki-Manasriver systemespeciallyunderclimatechange influenceanddevelopnewpartnerships toaddress the issues in the riverbasinandalsostrengthen trans-boundary collaboration and linkages. Themain impact from thisworkwas therecognitionofBrahmaputraconnectivitybyAssamForestDepartmentwhich issignificantcontributionforNorthSouthconnectivity.Further,todevelopbetterunderstandingandknowledgebaseonfloodmanagementanddesiltationinAs-sam,WWFIndiateamworkedtogetherwithtwoexpertsfromNationalInstituteofEcologyandnationalparkstafftoestablishwetlandsmanagementstrategyintheKazirangaNationalPark(KNP).Theworkisexpectedtobeamajorcontribu-tiontoresolvethelocalpracticalproblemsbeingfacedbytheForestDepartmentofficialswithrespecttothewetlandsmanagementandwouldstrengthentheirca-pacityineffectivemanagementofwetlandswithintheparkarea,whicharelifelineforthebiodiversityoftheKNP.

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Supporting water work in national context in Nepal and Bhutan

ThefirstNationalWaterSymposiuminBhutanwiththetheme“Towards Ensuring Water Security for Bhutan’s Future” washeld to take forward the recommenda-tions fromtheWWFsupported“BhutanWaterRiskScenariosandOpportunitiesfor ResilientDevelopment”. The symposiumwas organized in collaborationwith theNationalEnvironmentCommissionandUgyenWangchukInstituteforConser-vationandEnvironmentalResearchandsupportedbyWWF.PrimeMinisteropenedtheSymposiumandinformedthatwaterhasbeenidentifiedasoneoftheflagshipprogram in the 12thFiveYearPlan.The symposiumhelped tobring together allkey stakeholders (over60participants).WWFBhutan is also engaged in the im-plementationof theBhutanWaterRisksScenariosrecommendationsbysupport-ingNational Environment CommissionwithWaterQuality StandardMonitoringFrameworkandGIScapacityaswellassupportingNationalBiodiversityCentertostrengthentheAquaticBiodiversityInformationSystemwhichwillbelinkedtoSus-tainableHydropowerGuidelineofBhutanincollaborationwiththeDepartmentforHydropowerandPowerSystemsandtheWorldBank.

ThefirstRegionalSymposiumonNatural Capital and Payment for Ecosystem Ser-vices – Integrating Ecosystem Services Valuation for Decisions Makingwasjointlyorganized by the Watershed Management Division, Department of Forests andParkServicesandWWFinBhutan.Thesymposiumhelpedtobringthecountriesin theregiontogethertoshareexperiencesonNaturalcapitalvaluation,PaymentsforEcosystemServices (PES)andalsohelpedtocreateentrypoints to integrateeco-systemserviceassessmentsindevelopmentplanning,especiallyforNepalandBhu-tan.DisasterRiskReduction and Infrastructure InvestmentRiskReductionwereidentified as important entry points for promoting aNatural Capital based plan-ningapproachamongstpolicymakers.ThesymposiumalsohelpedtofinalizePESsynthesisreportforBhutanandrecommendedtoupscaletheexistingworkintheChamkharchhubasinandsupporttheimplementationofEcosystembasedplanningframework.TheBhutanreportonthe“ValuingEcosystemServicesinChamkharch-husub-basin”wasalsolaunchedduringopeningsession.

In Nepal, two policy dialogues on water resourcesmanagement were conductedtoadvocateonfree-flowingriversbyWWFNepal.Also,WWFNepalcollaboratedwithNepalRiverConservationTrusttoorganize2ndNationalRiverSummitonthetheme“ManagingRiversforLife”atthebankofTrishuliRiver,Gorkha.TheSummitprovidedaforumforpolicydialogueonWaterResourcesManagementattendedby256participantsfromdifferent.ImportantoutcomefromtheSummitwas“TrishuliDeclaration2017”.Further, tomarkWorldWaterDayandWorldMeteorologicalDay,WWFNepalsupported inorganizingariverbasincolloquiumunderanum-brellaeventofNepalNationalWaterandWeatherWeek2017.Similarly,threemoreothereventstomarkWorldWaterDayweresupported.

EnvironmentalflowsassessmentwasinitiatedinNepalandBhutansince2015aftertheE-flowscapacitybuildingtrainingbyWWFIndiateam.InNepal,theworkisledbyWWFNepalteamincollaborationwithKathmanduUniversityintheGandakibasin.Theassessment coveredseven important components:hydrology,hydrau-lics,fluvialgeomorphology,macro-invertebrates,fish,aquaticandterrestrialveg-etation,andsocio-cultureand livelihood.The technicalworkshop todisseminate theresultsanddiscussfurthersettingofE-flowswasorganizedinJune2017throughMFAbudget.AnexpertfromWWFIndiawasalsoinvitedtofacilitatetheworkshopandtoshareIndia’sexperiences.Thediscussionfromtheworkshopconcludedwith

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theneedtoconductan“E-FlowsSettingWorkshop”withalltheexperts,whichisplannedinFY18.ThecurrentE-FlowanalysisdidnotincludeflowrequirementsforfreshwaterspecieslikeGharialandRiverDolphin.Hence,thefinalE-Flowrequire-mentsmaychangeafterincorporatingthelogicalcommentsfromtheworkshopandafterincludingflowrequirementsforfreshwaterspecies.InBhutan,E-Flowwork isbeing ledby theNationalEnvironmentCommission throughAustrian fundingandfieldworkhasbeencompletedanddataunderanalysis.

Promoting sustainable linear Infrastructure in Nepal

TheGuidelinesforConstructionofEco/Wildlife–FriendlyLinearInfrastructures–thefirstofitskindintheregionhasbeendevelopedbyWWFNepalwithinitialpartnershipwithConfederation ofNepalese Industries (CNI). The process beganinFY16andtheguidelinehasbeenpreparedandfinalizedthroughaseriesofin-teractionswithstakeholders.In2017,acorecommitteewasformedtofinalisetheguidelinesanddiscussthewayforward.ThecommitteeorganisedtwoconsultationsandfinalisedtheguidelineswhichiscurrentlyunderprocessforendorsementbytheGovernmentofNepal.Theguidelinewillbeusedasareferencedocumentindesign-ingupcominginfrastructureinNepalandintheregion.

WithWWFNepalsupport,theSecondInfrastructureSummitwasheldinNepalandhostedbyCNIincollaborationwithMinistryofPhysicalInfrastructureandTrans-portandYouthCommunityforNepaleseContractors.Inthesummit,ideassuchasNaturalCapitalAccountingandFinancingGreenerInfrastructuretocontributeto agreenereconomyandlowcarbondevelopmentwerepitched.Atotalof159partici-pantsfromdifferentorganizationwerepresent. WWFalsofacilitatedtheparticipationofthreeWWFofficesandfiveGovernmentpartnersfromtheForestDepartmentandInfrastructuresector(Roads,Railways)from both countries to attend the “International Forum on Sustainable Infra-structure: IntegratingClimateResilienceandNaturalCapital intoTransport In-frastructurePlanningandDesign”.TheForumwasorganizedinHanoi,Vietnamby theAsianDevelopmentBankandWWFUS incollaborationwithMinistryofNaturalResourcesandEnvironmentVietNamInstituteofStrategyandPolicyonNaturalResourcesandEnvironment.TheoutcomewasDraftGuidingPrinciplesonSustainable Infrastructure,whichwillbe incorporated intoapaperandcasestudyserieson“PrinciplesforPlanning,DesigningandInvestinginClimateResil-ientandEcologicallySustainableTransportInfrastructurealongwiththeGuidingPrinciples.”

Leveraging sustainable funding for Himalayas water work

ThethreeWWFoffices(Nepal,Bhutan,India)alongwiththeLivingHimalayasteamandtheWWFGlobalEnvironmentfacility(WWFGEF)teaminWWFUSofficeandIUCNIndiaofficehavebeenworkingtogethersince2016ontheGEFIWregionalproposaltitled“EasternHimalayanGlacialWatershedsandRiverBasinsManage-mentProgram”.ConsultationshavebeenheldwithrelevantgovernmentministriesinthethreecountriesbothatcentralandstatelevelanddraftProgrammeFrameworkDocument(PFD)developedinearly2017.Butduetofundingconstraints,theinitialproposalwithfocusontwotransboundarybasinshasbeendownscaledtojustonetrans-boundarybasinbetweenIndiaandBhutanleadbyWWFonlywithoutIUCN.ThePFDhasbeenrevisedaccordinglyandiswaitingforgovernmentendorsementtobeputupforGEF7.

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Lessons learned, challenges and adaptive management

TheWater in the Economy,Natural Capital Valuation and engagements on Sus-tainableInfrastructureespeciallyincaseofBhutanwiththehydropowersectorhashelpedtobringtheenvironmentanddevelopmentsectortoworktogetherandbet-terunderstandthe issuesandtradeoffs.Weneedtocontinue toengageandkeep thepolicydialoguegoingandfindsolutionstoaddresstheissuesandchallenges.

Engagingandinfluencingbothgovernmentandprivatesectorparallellyoneco-friend-lyandclimatesmartinfrastructureiskeytodevelopingsustainableinfrastructure.

WiththenewfederalrestructuringinNepal,waterresourcesmanagementwillbean important issue for bothmanagement anduse.Hence engaging on the policydialoguetoensureintegratedwaterresourcesmanagementiscrucial.

Monitoring trips

In early 2017 head of international development teamAnne Tarvainen andCEOofWWFFinlandLiisaRohwederparticipatedintheLivingHimalayasprogrammeShareholdermeetinginBhutan,wherecountrydirectorsandconservationdirectorsfromNepal,BhutanandIndiatogetherwithWWFFinlandandUKrepresentativesdiscussedaboutthefutureoftheinitiative.Itwasnotedthatdespiteofseveraldelaysandchallengestheprogrammehasachievedimportantresultsbyapplyingregionalandtransboundaryapproaches.Onthatmeetingitwasdecidedthatthecountrieswilldiscussanddecidewhichapproachesshouldbecontinuedandhowthemanage-mentcouldbearrangedinthefuture.Thisanalysiswasn’tdonewhenthenewMFAPartnershipProgammewasdevelopedsothesupporttocontinuethemostsuccess-fulcomponentsoftheregionalprogrammewereincludedtotheNepalandBhutancountryprogrammesinthenewMFAPartnershipProgramme.Theplanningofthecontinuationoftheregionalandtransboundaryapproaches inEasternHimalayaswasn’tconcludedyetin2017.

BhUtanIn2017Programmesupport toBhutanwas relatively small and it focusedones-tablishingcooperationwiththeYouthDevelopmentFundYDF.Inaddition,carryforwardfrom2016supporttoHumanWildlifeConflictpreventionworkwasusedtocompletetheproject.Alsoplanningofnewprogrammewithfocusoncommunityforestsstarted.

Developing community based eco-tourism

During 2017,WWF supported a cooperation program called “MyGakidh Village(MGV)” with a local organization called Youth Development Fund (YDF), whichworkstocurbrural-urbanyouthmigrationthroughprovidingruralyouthwithlive-lihoodskillsandemploymentopportunitieswithin theirowncommunities.WWFsupportedthedevelopmentofcommunitybasedecotourismplanforMGV.Toim-plementtheplan,WWFsupportedthetrainingoflocalyouthwithdifferententre-preneurialskills(e.g. tourismhospitality,naturetourguideandshoprunning)aswellasinfrastructuredevelopmentofthetrail.

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Thecommunitybasedeco-tourismplancovers33householdsfrom20villagesinPunakhadistrict.Theplanisimplementedalongthe21kmlongancienttrailofthedivinemadman“lamDrukpaKunley”whichhosts cool temperate towarmsub-tropicalfloraandfauna(over150speciesoforchids,220speciesofbirdsandover15 species ofmammals). Plan identifies the needed infrastructure development(trailmaintenance,eco-structures,signages,informationcentre,visitorhubcom-plex,eco-campsite,etc.)andmarketingstrategiestoenhancevisitorappreciationandexperiencewithintheculturalframeworkofthecommunity.

Altogether23beneficiaries(19localvillageyouths,2parkstaffand2YDFstaff,outofwhich13women)receivedtrainingondifferentaspectsoftourismbusiness(hos-pitality,tourguiding,artandcraftdevelopment,homestays,etc.).Participantswerealsoeducatedonhygiene,garbagedisposal,andpricing.Communitynowrunsandisengagedinself-helpinitiativessuchashomestays,tailoringandsouvenirproductionco-operative,herbalteaproductionco-operativeandconveniencestore.TherearefourhouseholdsidentifiedinstrategiclocationtoservethepurposeofhomestaysunderMGV.Sevenofthebeneficiaries–youngcommunityrepresentatives(4girls,3boys)–weresupportedbyWWFwithafourmonthsstipendtoestablishskillsandentrepreneurshipinordertoemploythemselvesintheirownvillages.Theseyouthwillnowactasthelocalresourcespersonsfortheproject.

NinelocalyouthguidesfromMGVandoneYDFstaffundertookatwodaysoffieldtrainingaimedatempoweringthemtobenatureguidesforMGV.ThetrainingwasundertakenincollaborationwiththeUgyenWangchuckInstituteforConservationandEnvironmentalResearch(UWICER).Participantsreceivedbasicplant,animaland insects taxonomic training including theory and practically identifying theminthefield.Participantswerealsoeducatedondifferentvegetationtypesandhowtheyareaffectedbyelevations.Despiteshorttrainingparticipantsreportedagreaterawarenessofbiodiversity,increasedappreciationofthevalueofnaturalresourcessurroundingthem,andastrongersenseofresourcestewardshipbybecomingana-tureguideforMGV.

Tosupportthecompletionoftheeco-tourismtraildevelopment,installationofnon-intrusive service facilities such as bridges, canopies, resting spots are under pro-gress.ThegovernmentofficialshaveassuredYDFthesupporttowardsmaintenanceofthetrailaftertheprojectishandedovertothecommunity.Thus,whiletheoverallaimofMGVprojectistobuildlivelihoodskills,itssuccesswilllargelybedependentonsuccessfulcommunity-basedecotourismdevelopment,whichwillprovidebothalternativeeconomicincentivesaswellaspreserveenvironment.

Theeco-tourismcomponentoftheprojectwasagoodplatformoflearningforYDF.StaffinYDFarenowmuchmoreawareofthebiodiversityandimportanceofenvi-ronmentalprotection.EcotourismhasnowbecomeanewtoolforYDFtopromoteenvironmentallyandculturally friendlytourisminMyGakidhVillages inBhutan.BothWWFandYDF found cooperation fruitful and are now looking for fundingsourcesforanewprojecttogether.

Solutions for Human Wildlife Conflicts

SomecomponentsoftheprojecttoreduceHumanWildlifeconflictsthroughaSAFE-systemapproachwerecarryforwardedfrom2016to2017.In2017capacitydevelop-mentof18AgricultureExtensionStaff(2women)ofZhemgangDzongkhagontheuseofGPSandonBasicsofGISwassupported.AreaisoneofthefourareaswhereHWC

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RapidAssessmentwascarriedoutandHumanWildlifeConflict(HWC)SAFESystemstrategywasdeveloped.ThemainstrategyistoestablishnationaldatabaseforHWCinformation.Toimplementthisstrategysuccessfully,capacitydevelopmentoffieldstaffandequippingthemwithnecessarytoolsisimportant.WiththeuseoftheGPS,fieldstaffwillbecollectingdataoncroplosstowildlifeandcarryoutHWChotspotmappingtohelpdecisionmakersandplannerscanallocateresourcesaccordinglytomanageHWCinthearea.AfterthetrainingasolarfencesurveywasconductedwiththehelpofGPS.Teammappedtheactuallengthofsolarfence,coordinates,checkedandrectifiedtheconnections.Thetotallengthofthefenceintheareais73.7kmandallthefencesarerunbysolarpower.Theteamobservedwrongconnectionsofbat-tery,energizerandchargecontrollersthathaveresultedinfailureofthefences.

TheknowledgeonandskillofusingGPSandbasicGISwas foundveryusefulbytheagriculturestaffasnoneofthestaffhadthistypeofskillspriortothisproject.Nowtheyfeelmoreconfidenttousethisknowledgeandskillsinassessmentofcropdamagebywildlife,preparationofhotspotmapsandmaintainingaGISbaseddata-sets,whicharemoreaccurateandreliablethevisualestimates(traditionalpractice).Looking at the usefulness of the knowhowand skill for the agriculturefield staffNationalPlantProtectionCentre(NPPC)alreadyincludesthisactivityintheir12thFiveYearPlanforrestoftheagriculturestaffinthecountry.

Planning of future work under MFA support

Inthenewpartnershipprogramme(2018-2021)withMFAsupport,WWFBhutanwillbeworkingwithCommunityForestsandaiming towards strengthening theirgovernanceaswellas increasingcapacityof themembers. Inpreparationfor thisnewpartnershipprogramand tomake itmore inclusiveandparticipatory,WWFBhutanalongwiththeprojectpartnersvisitedandconsultedwitharound11Com-munityForests covering6districts in theSouthern,WesternandEasternpartofBhutan.Theaimwasto learnmoreabout thechallengesandsuccessof thecom-munityforeststohelpdesignactivities,toestablishbaselinesandhelpselectsitesfortheNewPartnershipProgram.KeepingtheobjectivesandrequirementsofthenewPartnershipprograms inmind, theconsultationmeetingshadwomenrepre-sentativesinthemeetings.Youthrepresentationwasalsohigh,anditwasnotedthat alotofyouthareactivelyengagedinthecommunityforestrymanagementwithsomeyouthtakingupkeypositionsastheexecutivemembersofthegroups.Theconsul-tationmeetingshelpedtoselectsitesandtargetselectedinterventionsforthenewPartnershipProgram.

Lessons learned, challenges and adaptive management

AsoftodateMGVprojecthasmadeagoodprogress,especiallyinitiativesarenowon groundand are in operation.The generationof some income from the initia-tiveshavebegunbuttheyarestillnotfinanciallyattractivetoyoungentrepreneurs. Therefore,itcrucialforYDFtocontinuemonitoringthemandprovidetimelysup-porttilltheyreachtothepointwheretheyareself-contained.Thismayincludesup-portingcriticaloperationalissues,marketingandbrandingofproducts,formulationofappropriatebylaws,goodbookandrecordkeeping,etc.

Monitoring trips

Head of international development teamAnneTarvainen visitedBhutan in early2017togetherwithWWFUKrepresentatives.Duringthisvisitanupdatediscussion

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wasdonewithWWFBhutanrepresentativesreflectingtotheirstrategicgoalsandthepresentsituationandpossible fundinggaps.Also, theorganizationaldevelop-mentofWWFBhutanofficewasdiscussedwiththeWWFBhutanCountryDirec-tor.ThesediscussionsenabledWWFFinlandtoidentifythecommunityforestryas thefuturecooperationareabetweenFinlandandBhutan.

Status of conservation financing in Bhutan

During2017,theGovernmentofBhutanandWWFinitiatedaninnovativeprojectcalledBhutanforLife(www.bfl.org.bt)thataimstobethestrategicandlong-termsolution to ensure sustainable financing for conservation of the biodiversity inBhutan.Withmultipledonorsupport,theaimistocreateaUSD43millionfund–thefirstof itskindinAsia–topermanentlyprotectBhutan’snetworkofpro-tectedareas.ThefundingwillbecombinedwithUSD75millionfromtheBhutangovernment,whichwillbecontributedovera14-yearperiod.TheprogramisalsosupportedinpartbyaUSD26.6milliongrantfromtheGreenClimateFund.Withthelong-termfundingtheaimistoensurethatthereisfundingforevertoproperlymanageBhutan’sprotectedareas–whichconstitute51percentofthecountry,thehighestpercentageof landdesignatedasprotectedinAsia.TheroleofWWFontheimplementationofBhutanforLifewillbedecidedin2018.Alsoin2017,WWFBhutanwasinvolvedinthenationalReducingEmissionsfromDeforestationandforest Degradation (REDD) readiness project called “National REDD+ StrategyandorActionPlan,BenefitSharingandFundMobilizationforREDD+PrograminBhutan” thatwas implementedby Indufor in2017-2018.WWFBhutan’s rolehasbeentoprovidetechnicalbackstoppingwithlimitedinvolvementintheim-plementation.

nePaLInNepalWWFcontinuedtheworkintheTeraiArc landscapeinsouthernNepalwiththeinclusionofsomenewareasinthefarwesternNepalaswellasintheChuriamidhillsinwesternNepal.WWFworkstorestoreandprotectforestsinthebufferzonesaroundprotectedareasaswellasintheconnectingcorridorsbetweenconser-vationareas.Mainapproachistosupportcommunityforestryandsustainablelive-lihooddevelopmentoflocalcommunitiesintheseareas.Maininterventionsin2017includedrestoration,habitatmanagement,youthengagementincommunitybasedanti-poaching interventions, and in the Generation Green campaign, and illegalwildlifecrimecontrol.SupportwasalsoallocatedtocapacitybuildingofWWFNe-palstaffintopicssuchasresults-basedmanagementandHumanRightsBasedAp-proachaspreparationfornewpartnershipprogram.During2017,ourworkinNepalwithMFAfunding,benefitted49localCSOs/CBOsand8955householdsincluding 67%ofmarginalizedandindigenousgroup.Similarly,WWFreachedto10501indi-vidualsincluding2660youthsand4019schoolkids.

Curbing poaching and addressing human-wildlife conflicts

During 2017, poaching and illegal wildlife trade have been effectively curbed in NepalandyetagainNepalhas “zeropoaching”of rhinos for thefifth time (2011,2013,2014and2015,2017).Thenumbersofflagshipspeciessuchastigersandrhi-nosareincreasingeveryyearasaresultofthejointeffortsofconservationstakehold-

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ers, includingenforcementagenciesandcommunities.Thissuccess isexceptional intheglobalcontext.

To tacklepoachingand illegalactivities, 13communitybasedanti-poachingunits(CBAPU), with 155members (40% female), were strengthened andmobilized in thebufferzoneofBardiaNationalpark.AlsopatrollingequipmentlikeGPS,cam-erasandstationarieswereprovidedto8highpriorityCBAPUs.Forsustainability,endowment fund (US$12500)wasestablished in twoBufferZoneUserCommit-tees.TheinterestgeneratedfromtheseendowmentfundswillbeusedforCBAPUmobilization.Capacityenhancementhasbeeneffectiveincontrollingillegalwildlifecrime.Through17patrollingevents,alsoriverpatrolling,altogether12casesofil-legalactivitiesinvolving120peoplewerereported.CBAPUsalsorescuedtwodeersandonepythonfromvillageandhandedovertoparkauthorities.CBAPUmemberswerealsoengagedinconservationawarenessthroughinteraction,plantation,quizandspeechcompetitiononanti-poaching.

Asa result fromeffective conservation,humanwildlife conflicts (HWC)have in-creasedrapidlyinthepastyearsinNepal.Toaddresstheproblem,mitigationmeas-ureswereappliedin8sitesofKhatacorridorandbufferzoneofBardiaNationalParkmainlyprotectingcropsandlivestockof2707households(331marginalized, 1 888 indigenous). Mitigationmeasures include e.g. building predator resistantpensandconstructionofsolarfenceorotherfencesaroundvillages.During2017,two Income Generation Activity revolving funds – particularly targeting HumanWildlifeConflictvictims–wereestablished inbufferzoneofBankeand inKhatacorridor.Thefundscanhelp35HWCvictimseachyear.

Reducing pressure from forests

During 2017, pressure on forests, especially in critical forest corridors andbot-tlenecksthatconnectconservationareas,wasreducedthroughvariousinterven-tionssuchasrestoration,forestfiremanagement,improvedgrazingpracticesandalternative energy options. 333hectares of degraded forest area is under resto-rationthroughfencing,plantationandimprovedforestmanagement.Tocontrolovergrazinginanareaof300hectaresofforests,attentionwasgiventosustainablecattlemanagementandgrazing.Forinstance,stallfeedingofcattlewaspromotedin235householdswithcementtroughsand418householdsweresupportedwithartificial inseminationequipment forcattlemanagement inbufferzone.Endow-mentfundofUS$200,000wassupportedinAmaltariBufferZoneUserCommit-tee forcontinuationofveterinaryservices.As localpeoplearenowmorewillingto reduce the sizeof their cattleherds, theyarealsomore interested inmanag-ingtheircattlebetter.Thisalsoresultsintheneedofveterinaryservices.Alsotoreducepressurefromforestsbyreducingfirewooddemand,tworevolvingfunds(US$12,000)wereestablished inMadivalley forbiogaspromotion forat least 50household.Furthertocontrolforestfireriskinanareaof196hectaresofcor-ridorand100hectaresofbufferzone,constructionof13kmfirelinewassupport-ed.Wealsomanaged10hectaresofwetlandsinbufferzoneofChitwanNational Park.Wetlandandfirelinemanagementsupporthashelpedinexpandingqualityhabitatforwildlifeandhasalsopromotedtourism.

Supporting diversified livelihoods and social inclusion

Asastrategytohelplocalpeopletobothbenefitfromnaturalresourcesaswellastoreducethepressurefromunsustainablenaturalresourcesutilization,WWFhas

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supportedthedevelopmentofvariouslivelihoodandincomegenerationschemesinthevillagesresidingaroundvaluableforestareas.

In2017,eightcommunityenterprises(milkchilling,leafplatemaking,mushroomfarming,fishfarming,women’ssouvenirshop,homestay,vegetablefarming)werestrengthened in Chitwan and Kanchanpur benefitting around 4 383 households(over26000people).Toensuresustainablefunctionoftheenterprises,majorityofsupportwasfocusedinpreviouslysupportedenterprisesinChitwanarea.

Topromotesocialequityandinclusion,WWFtargetedenterprisedevelopmentsup-porttolessadvantagedgroupsaswell.Forinstance,Pipraharhomestayisanewsitewithhighhumanwildlifeconflictscausingdamagetocrop.Withgoodpotentialtodevelopsuccessfulcultureandnaturebasedtourism,supporttoestablishinfrastruc-turewasprovidedtogetherwithUKfundedPIPALprojectandcommunities’owncontribution.ViaLeonardoDiCaprioFoundationhabitatmanagementforwildlifesightinghasbeensupportedinthesamearea.Also,vegetabletrainingandtoolkitsupportwasprovidedto25freebondedlaborsinKanchanpursothattheycanbe-ginwithcommercial farmingenterprise infuture.Further, twoendowmentfunds (US$ 3000 – 5000 each) were established in labor cooperatives in Kailali andNawalparasi.The interestgeneratedwillbeprovidedasseedmoneyfor initiatingenterprises/smallbusinesstoforestworkers.

Manyoftheprogrammeareassufferedfromheavyfloodsin2017,WWFsupportwaschanneledtosupportfloodvictims.Forinstance,womencommunitysouvenirshopinSauraha,Chitwan(previouslysupportedbyMFAfundedproject)wasdamagedbyflood.Reviving thiscenterwas importantas incomegenerationofat least676womenof52womengroupsisrelatedwiththisshop.Womenfrom52groupsmakehandicraftsandkeepitforsaleinthisshopassouvenirtotouristsvisitingSauraha.

Inadditiontoenterprisedevelopment,266(10marginalized,212indigenous)for-estdependentworkerswereprovidedwithskill-basedtrainingsinsixdistricts.Theobjectiveistoshiftthefocusfromunsustainableforestexploitationtomoresustain-ableforest-basedemploymentoremploymentinothersector.Manyofthesetrain-eeshavejustcompletedtrainingsandnowstartingtoutilizetheirskills.Ofthem,traineesofearthquakeresistantmasonryhaveexperienceduptodoubleincreaseintheirsalary.

All funds for green enterprises and income generating activities are mobilizedthroughlocalcooperatives,amicrofinancialinstitution,affiliatedwithcommunityconservationorganizations to create transparent and sustainable fundmobilizingmechanism. For this,WWFhas supported the institutional capacity of the coop-erativesthroughvarioustrainings,suchasaccountmanagementandproposalandreportwriting.Institutionalsupporthaseasedtheofficialworkofthecooperativewhilethetrainingofstaffhashelpedinimprovingoperations,especiallyinaccountkeeping.

Partnership with trade unions to empower forest workers

WWFcontinuedthecooperationwithTheTradeUnionSolidarityCentreofFinland(SASKinFinland)andtheirlocaltradeunionorganizationsinNepal.Throughthepartnershipwith tradeunions,conservationmessagehasreached thewidercom-munity and inotherhandpolicy andadvocacy for forestworker’s righthasbeenstrengthened. In 2017,WWF continued to support Building andWoodWorkers

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International–NepalAffiliatesCommittee (BWI-NAC) formanagementof greenresourcecenter,renewalofoutreachplatform(website),protectionof14hectaresofplantationandforestmanagementandconservationtrainingfor95forestwork-ers(40%female).Inadditiontothis,BWI-NACleadershiphandovereventwasalsosupported.InthiseventleadershipfromConstructionandAlliedWorkers’UnioninNepal(CAWUN)washandedovertoCentralUnionofPainters,Plumbers,ElectroandConstructioninNepal(CUPPEC).Duringthisevent,participatingmembersap-preciatedthatBWI-NAChasinculcatedcultureofleadershipexchangeinharmonyandthisissomethingthatcanbelearntandreplicatednationally.InthesameeventBWI-NACwomencommitteewithsevenmemberswasalsoformedtofurtherspecifyandaddresswomenworker’sissues.

SustainabilityofBWI-NACcanbeforeseenasitiscontinuouslygraduatingandex-panding. Itsmemberunionsaregettingnationalaswellas internationalrecogni-tion.Inlocalgovernment,atleast20tradeunionmembers(minimum5female)areelectedopeningopportunitiesforforesttradeunionmemberstoaddresstheirissue.Similarly,onememberofCUPPECisparliamentmemberinstategovernmentandat centralgovernmentpreviousmemberofBWI-NAC isadvisor topresentprimeminister.Internationally,CAWUNandCUPPECarenowalsoaffiliatedwithForestStewardshipCouncil(FSC),openingfurthermoreexposureopportunitiestointerna-tionalforestcommittee.BWI-NACarelookingforwardsupportandguidancefromWWFNepaltobettercashtheseopportunities.

Supporting population, health and environment approach

WWFalsocontinueditscooperationwiththeFamilyPlanningAssociationofNe-palonenhancingtheawarenessandknowledgeofespeciallyyouthonsexualandreproductivehealthandconservation.Theapproachcombiningconservationandfamilyplanninghascontributedtochangethemindsetsandattitudesoflocalcom-munities, including youth andwomen groups, to engage in conservation effortsand understand the importance of both human health and healthy ecosystems.During2017 sustainable operation andmanagement ofMulti-PurposeResourceCenters(MPRCs)andcommunityclinicsweresupportedtoimplementpopulation,healthandenvironmentapproach.For this, endowment fundup toUS$5000wasestablishedineachoffourMPRCsandcommunityclinicsinbufferzonesandcorridors.Theoperationalguidelinehasbeenpreparedformobilizationof thesefunds.Asperthisguideline,theinterestgeneratedwillbeusedforanti-poachinggroupsmobilizationandmanagementofcentersandcommunityclinic.AMPRCmanagementtrainingwasalsoconductedinbufferzoneofShuklaphantaNationalparkfor46youth(31female).IninitiationofMPRC/communityclinicinMadiaone-dayhealthcampwasorganizedinwhichmorethan1066localpeoplereceivedhealthservices.ForthishealthcamptechnicalsupportwasprovidedbyChitwanMedicalCollege.

ToensurehumanresourceforPopulation,HealthandEnvironment(PHE)inter-ventions inMPRC and community clinic, seven local youths (five female) werecapacitated andmobilized as local resource person for Sexual and reproductivehealth (SRH)andbiodiversity conservation.Four local resourcepeopleofMadiandDekhatbulifurtherconducted11mobilecampsonSRHandbiodiversitycon-servationsensitizing1165youths(686female,146marginalized,734indigenous).InMahadevpuriCommunityForestCoordinationCommittee(CFCC),Femalelocalresourcepersonsaremobilizedparticularly to train 16youthofMPRConbasiccomputerskill.

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Evaluationoftheproject“ImprovingsexualandreproductivehealthandrightsandbiodiversityconservationthroughintegratedapproachinNepal”wasstartedinlate2017. Projectwas implemented through an integrated approach by four partners–Väestöliitto, Family PlanningAssociation ofNepal (FPAN),WWFFinland andWWFNepal.EvaluationwasconductedbyCentralDepartmentofPopulationStud-ies,TribhuvanUniversity.Resultsandrecommendationswillbediscussedandtakenintoaccountin2018whentheevaluationisready.

Improving good natural resources governance

For better implementation of good governance in forest corridor communities,“GoodGovernancePracticeandAssessment”trainingwasconductedfor22members (9women;11indigenous)fromallcorridors.Theyaremobilizedaslocalresourcepersonstoconductgoodgovernanceassessmentandorientationin26CommunityForest User Groups in these four corridors. Five indicators of good governance(Participation, Accountability, Rule of Law, Transparency and Predictability)wereusedforassessment.OverallassessmentsuggestedthatmajorityofCommu-nityForestUserGroup(CFUGs)hadmoderategovernancewithneedofimprove-ment.Assessmentsuggested,suchstatusmaybealsobecauseofperiodicchangeofexecutivecommittee.Thus,orientationandcoachingongoodgovernancehastobeperiodicwithchangeincommittee.Thisassessmentandorientationsensitized678CFUGmembers(320maleand358females;89marginalized,334indigenous).Similarly, 6workshopsongoodgovernancepracticeswere conducted in6bufferzones of Chitwan National Park with participation of 194members (55 female).These6BufferZoneUserCommittees(BZUCs)arenowpracticinggoodgovernance.

WWFalsosupportedNGOFederationofIndigenousofNepal(NGOFION)tocon-duct awarenessprogramon Inclusionpolicyof local governmentand its imple-mentationstatus.Inthisprogram,6 localgovernment leaders(fromindigenousgroup)andchairpersonoffederationhighlightedinclusionpolicyinlocalgovern-ment.Intotal60indigenouspeople(30%female)fromfourdistrictsattendedthisprogram.

Enhancing climate change mitigation and adaptation

In 2017, climate change adaptation activitieswere implemented in three sites ofKailali, Jogbuda and Phulabari supporting to increase adaptive capacity of 1090households(166marginalized,227indigenous).Adaptationactivities includedforinstancerestoringofdegradedforestareaswithfencingandplantingoffastgrow-ingbroomgrassandcinnamon.Alsoconstructionofconservation/rechargepondswhichenablerechargingwatersourcesaswellashelpinrestorationbyincreasingsoilmoisturecontentandconstructionofspursintheriverbankofGodawaririverwhichprotectsriverbankcuttingandforestlandformflashflood.

InthecontinuationofthenationalREDD-readinessprocess,theEmissionReduc-tionProgrammeDocument(ERPD)thatoutlinesthenationaleffortsofthegovern-mentofNepaltoimplementtheREDD-program,wassubmittedtotheWorldBankfortheTechnicalAdvisoryPanel(TAP)reviewinJuly2017withanexpectationtopresenttheprogramtotheParticipantCommitteeinDecember2018.AtrainingprogramwasalsoorganizedforgovernmentofficialsfromREDDImplementationCentre(RIC)andDepartmentofForestResearchandSurvey(DFRS)fromthe12-16thOctober2017torollouttheERPDandcarbonaccountingforfutureuptakeofMonitoringReportingandVerifications(MRV).Inthistraining20government

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officials (16male,4 female)wereorientedontheERPD.Duetosome issuesontheconsistencyofthemethodologybetweenthenationalandsub-nationalcarbonaccounting,changeshadtoberedoneintheERPDtoresubmititinMarch2018.TheERPDcouldnotberolledoutatthecommunitylevelaschangesonthecarbonaccountingisstillongoing.WWFhasbeensupportingthegovernmentofNepalintheERPDdevelopmenttogetherwithFinnishcompanyArbonaut.

Engaging Youth through The Generation Green

AsapartofTheGenerationGreencampaign, 1075people (45%girls), includingstudents,youthandteacherswereengagedtocreateawarenessonsustainablelife-styles, consumption ethics and biodiversity conservation inNepal. This include, 150mentees(74female)–from34differentcolleges–inthirdbatchofmentorshipprogram.Through thisprogrammenteeswereengaged in125differentactivitiesonwastemanagement,Water, sanitationandhygiene (WASH), vertical farming,climatechange,waterqualityassessment,cleaningcampaign,plantationandotherenvironment friendly events.Similarly, theyalsogotopportunity to reach5000studentsfromGrade1to9from48(33publicand15private)schools,49organiza-tions(banks,restaurants,governmentagencies,localcommunities),47localhouse-holdsand2orphanagesalongwiththeirmentors.Thishasbroadenedtheirexperi-ence,deepentheirthoughtprocessandhasalsohelpedtheminculcateconservationmessagewhichwereobservedintheiractiveparticipationineachevent.

One of the youth supported to attend photography workshop is now work-ing as a photo journalist in the leading English daily, The Himalayan Times.Similarly, Tyre Treasure, a concept developed by winner team in Greenova-tion program 2016 has turned their dream project into real enterprise venture (https://www.tyretreasures.com/ ). The team of four (3 girls and one boy) hasnowestablishedaworkingcompanythatproducespetbedsandshowpiecesfrom used/waste tyres.Mass events like Earth Hour,WildWisdom – quiz and social mediacampaignshavefurtherreachedmorethan20,000youths.

Ensuring sustainability of conservation interventions

FourCommunityForestCoordinationCommittees(CFCC)(Mahadevpuri,Kamdi,Khata,Narti)whomWWFsupportedformorethanadecadepreparedtheirsustain-abilityplanstograduallymakethemself-reliantandsustainconservationinterven-tions.149members(24female)participatedintheconsultationswithengagementof46%ofdisadvantagedandindigenousgroups.Aspartofplanimplementation,KhataCFCChasestablishedelectricfencemaintenancefund,NartiCFCCconduct-edgoodgovernanceassessmentandforestmanagementtrainingandMahadevpuriCFCCinKamdicorridorhasconstructedmultipurposenurseryforwhichtheywerealsoabletoraiseleverageofUS$6000fromlocalgovernment.MahadevpurihasenvisionedtosustainconservationinterventionlikeforestmanagementandCBA-PUmobilizationthroughincomemadefromthisnursery.

Forcommunity involvementandcapacityenhancement6eventsofconservationawarenessandtrainingswereconducted.Intotal233people(33%female)partici-pated.Ofthem13weredisadvantagedgroupsand131indigenous.Oftheseevents,twowere intense trainingandwere focusedondeveloping localresourcepersonforforestmanagementandbiodiversityconservationandSexualandReproductiveHealth(SRH)topics.InKailali,15localforestworkers(6female)werecapacitatedonsustainableforestmanagementandnowcantraintheircommunities.Similarly,

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outof32people(23female)trainedonbiodiversityconservationandSRH,25cannowconductawarenessprograms.Inaddition,firstofMaywascelebratedintwositestomarkconservationcontributionofforestworkersandyouths.Intotal656youths/tradeunionmembersparticipated(40%female).

WWFhassupportednineIntegratedRiverManagementCommittees(IRMC)inthepastdecadethroughtheIndrawatisub-basinproject.Projectsupportendedin2016,butfrom2017programmesupport50000€wasallocatedtostrengthenandsup-port IRMCs inIndrawati subbasin,and toestablishasubbasin level institution.Evaluationof thisprojectwascompleted inearly2017andconductedbyFinnishConsultingGroup(evaluationwasattachedin2016annualreporttoMFA).Basedontherecommendationsoftheevaluationanexitplanwaspreparedandputintoprac-ticein2017.AsWWFsupporthascometoanend,sustainabilityplanhasbeendevel-opedandimplementedtoensuresmoothcontinuationoftheinstitutions.Throughvariousevents,suchasprojectclosingworkshops,differentcapacitybuildingtrain-ings, institutional support tooffice set-upandmanagementandestablishmentofendowmentfundthecapacityoftheIRMCsweresupportedtostartrunningontheirown.Intotal131stakeholders(23female)participatedinthisclosingworkshops.

ThesustainabilityplanalsosupportedtoconductValueChainAnalysisofcarda-momandvegetableslinkingitsmarketandeconomicopportunitiesforbenefitoflocal communities. Specifically, current situation of production and supplywasassessedanddocumented.Likewise,existingmarketchainandlinkagesofproduc-erswiththeactorsinvaluechainwasidentifiedanditsstatuswasassessed.Gapsinproduction,valueadditionandmarketingwerealsoidentified.OnbasisofthisanalysisvaluechainplanofdevelopmentwasalsopreparedandhandedovertoIRMCs.

Strenghtening WWF Nepal’s capacity

In2017,organizationalcapacitywas furtherdevelopedbystrengtheninge.g.Pro-gramDevelopment&Monitoringunit,Infrastructureexpertiseandwaterresourcescapacity.Furthermanagementwasdonetosmoothentheleadershiptransitionpro-cessinNepalasthepriorcountryrepresentativeMr.AnilManandharswitchedtootherdutiesintheWWFnetworkandnewcountryrepresentativewasnominatedonlyin2018.WWFNepal’sSustainabilityPlanwasfinalizedandadraftactionplanwasdevelopedwherethetimelinesarebeingreviewedwithrespect to thechangeintheLeadershipafterwhichthePlanwillbeinitiatedintheWWFNepal’sAnnualRetreatinMarch2018.

WWFNepal alsoprovided capacitydevelopment andnetwork exposure to staffmembersinvariousroles.ThedevelopmentneedswereidentifiedasapartoftheyearlytrainingneedsanalysistostrengthenthemintheirtechnicalcapacitiesandbuildstrongnetworkrelationsasapastofWWFglobalnetworkengagement.Intotal14WWFstaffs(6femalestaff)werecapacitated/engagedinnetworkmeeting.Ofthem,10staffwerefromoperationteam,2fromcommunicationteam,1fromconservationeducationand1frommonitoringteam.Followinguprecommenda-tionofMFACSOevaluationteam,wehadplannedtocapacitateWWF’sprojectstaff on result basedmanagement to enhance technical capacity and backstop-pingatfieldlevel.Asperthisplanafivedaystrainingworkshopwasconductedonresultbasedmanagement/Projectmanagementcycle for 19project staffs (ofwhich4werefemale)frombothTeraiArcLandscape(TAL)andSacredHimalayanLandscape(SHL).Thisincluded2projectofficers,4program/projectassociates,

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2M&Eassociatesand11communitymobilizers.Inthistraining,projectstaffwereprovided with practical guide on using Rights-basedmanagement approach inconservationprojects.Onlastdayorientationonfinancialcompliancewerealsoprovidedbyoperationteam.Attheendofthistrainingtheycouldconnectthem-selvesinentireresultchainandwerealsoabletoseetheirroleininWWF’sandtheirrespectivelandscape’sstrategies.

Adaptive management

In2017,thereweretwomajorchallengespoliticallyandnaturally.Politically,elec-tionfromlocaltofederalgovernmentcausedhugeengagementofgovernmentstaffincludingenforcementagenciesthroughouttheyear.Duetothiswehadtochangetimeline of two main activities a) strengthening Wildlife Crime Control Bureau(WCCB)andb)policyandadvocacybothofwhichrequire intenseengagementofenforcementagencies.Naturally,floodinaugustdidcausehugedamagetoprojectsitesandconservationinterventions.Duetothiswechangedsomebudgetlineforflooddamagerecovery-speciallytowomensouvenirshopinSaurahawherewomenfrom52womengroupswereaffiliatedforlivelihood.

DuetotransitionofWWFNepal’sleadershipwewerenotabletostartsustainabilityplanimplementationbutwedraftedactionplan.ImplementationofactionplanwillbeinitiatedintheendofMarch2018duringannualretreat.

Monitoring trips

HeadofinternationaldevelopmentteamAnneTarvainenvisitedNepalinearly2017togetherwithWWFUKrepresentative.ThepurposeofthevisitwastojointlydiscussaboutWWFNepalnewstrategyandsupport fromFinlandandUK to implementthestrategy.WWFNepalhaddevelopedalsospecificresultschainstoeachstrategicobjectivesuchasforests,freshwaterandwildlife.Theseresultchainsandpossiblecapacityandfundinggapsonthe implementationwerediscussed.Alsothepoliti-calsituationandespeciallydefederalizationprocessanditspossibleimplicationstoWWF’sworkwasdiscussed.ThesediscussionslaidgroundforplanningofthenewPartnershipProgrammeapproach inNepal. Itwasnotedthatsuch jointmissionswithotherWWFnetworkofficeswhichsupportNepalareusefulforstrategicleveldialoguewithourpartners.

CountryRepresentativeAnilManandhar andDirector of fieldprogramsShivRajBhattafromWWFNepalvisitedFinlandinAugust2017.Theywereonatourtovisitandthanktheirmaindonors(UK,USandFinland)anddiscussaboutthefutureasthecountrydirectorAnilManandharshiftedtonewdutiesinNovember.

FieldlevelmonitoringvisittoNepalwasconductedinOctober2017byMaijaKau-konenandTanjaPirinen.TheyvisitedareasaroundBardia,BankeandDang.Someof the sites visited were new (Phulpari) and MFA supported activities had juststarted. Some sites (for exMahadevpur), whereMFA support had continued for adecadewerevisitedtodiscusstheexit-strategiesandsustainabilityoftheinterven-tions.TheseinitiativesaredescribedinmoredetailearlierintheNepalchapter.InKathmandutherewereseveralmeetingswithWWFNepalstaffaboutmonitoring,Humanrights-basedapproach(HRBA),tvproduction(Villienjäljillä)inNepal,etc.Newauditorwasalsometbriefly.InDecemberTanjaPirinenandKatjaRönkköfromWWFFinlandvisitedNepalwiththefilmcrewtofilm3episodesoftv-production“Villienjäljillä”.

© James Morgan / WWF-US

BUILDInG GLoBaL resPonsIBILIty In FInLanD

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reDUCInG the eCoLoGICaL FootPrIntDuring2017,theworkinFinlandtoreduceecologicalfootprintfocusedmostlyoninfluencing Finnish institutional investors to be aware of the climate impacts oftheirholdings, influencing targetedprivate sectorpartners inFinland to shift to-wardsmoresustainableproduction,especiallyregardingsoy,andfinallypromoting thewaterstewardshipcommitmentamongFinnishprivatesectorpartners.

Towards sustainable investments

During 2017, WWF analyzed the public equity portfolios of the 5 largest as-set owners in Finland (among 11 other European countries). The analysis re-vealedthattheFinnishpensionfundswereratherwellalignedwiththe2-degree carbon budgets when the scope was limited to coal mining, coal utilities andrenewable energy. 15 recommendations to investors were also produced, see: https://wwf.fi/mediabank/10573.pdf. The recommendations are a first step as partofWWF’sworktodrivethealignmentofassetowners’portfolioswiththePar-isAgreement.Therecommendationsincludedforinstancelinkingclimatechangein investment policies and develop tools andmetric to set-up climate science-basedtargets.Investorsarealsoencouragedtoinvestinbusinessesthatmitigateclimatechangeimpacts.Theanalysisanddevelopmentof therecommendationsincludedintensiveengagementwiththesector.Also,ashortvideointroductiontotheinterconnectionofpensionsavingsandclimateimpactsoffossilinvestmentswaspublishedanditreachedapublicof42000peopleinthesocialmedia.

WWF Finland, together with Finnish research institutes (Aalto -University,NaturalResourcesInstituteFinland,TechnicalResearchCentreofFinland)andministries (Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry,Ministry of the Environment)established the Water Stewardship Commitment to advance sustainable wa-ter use and governance and support private sector companies to improve theircorporate responsibility linked to water risks. The water stewardship commit-ment challenges Finnish companies and organizations to assess water risks intheir value chains, to take care of sustainability of water use at their own andtheir value chains’ operation locations, and to engage in collective action withstakeholders todevelopsustainablewateruseandgovernance.See thewebsite: https://sitoumus2050.fi/commitment/vesivastuusitoumus. Already two privatesectorcompanieshavecommittedtheirresponsesinthewebsite(UPMandFin-layson). Delightfully, the water stewardship commitment was awarded as the“New initiativeof theyear”by theSustainabledevelopment committeeand theaward“Coherentdevelopment”byKehysry.

Furthermore, to influence the sustainability of consumption and production sec-tors,workshopsfocusingonthesustainabilitychallengesofinternationallytradedcommodities,suchassoyandpalmoil,wereorganizedwithtwolargeFinnishcom-panies.Theworkshopscommunicatedthesustainability issuestotheinternalkeystakeholderswithinthecompanies.

Also,SustainableDevelopmentGoal-relevantcommitmentsregardingsustainablesoyproductionandwaterstewardshipwerepromoted.Inadditiontosupportsus-tainablesoyproduction,thesoycommitmentwassignedbytwocommittedcompa-niesonthecommitment2050.fiplatformandbysixcompanies(HKScanFinland,Kesko,ArlaSuomi,UnileverFinland,Norvida,Fazer,Valio)ontheWWFwebsite.

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LearnInG For ChanGe In2017,throughitsenvironmentaleducationprogramme,WWFhasbeenabletoimprove and strengthen the environmental competence and citizenship of youngadults, pupils and teachers inFinland.Thishasbeenachievedby supporting theimplementationofthenationalcurriculum,byprovidingeducationalmaterials,sup-portingEco-clubsinschools,trainingteachersandbysupportingtheWWFYouthTeam to implement various environmental activities.Theoverall theme for envi-ronmentaleducationworkhasbeenfood,whichisoneofthepriorityareasofWWFengagementinFinlandtoreduceourecologicalfootprint.

Influencing environmental education at schools

ToenableteacherstoimplementthenewcurriculumandsupportpupilparticipationWWFbuiltuptheircapacityandgavethemeducationaltoolstosupportenviron-mentalcitizenshipoftheirpupils.During2017wetrained325teachersunderthetopic of children and youth engagement and environmental participation,mostlywithourownfundingoutsideprogrammesupport.SustainablefoodhasbeenagoodandtangibleexampleonasubjectthatcanbetackledbypupilsaspartofEco-clubactivities.Accordingtofeedbacktheteachershavereportedgainingbettercompe-tencetosupporttheenvironmentalcitizenshipoftheirpupilsandgettingnewtoolstotheirwork.

WWFgotfundingfromtheNationalBoardofEducationtotrain100teachersatfivecitiesduring2017-2018.Thetopicofthistrainingis“Thepupilsasenvironmentalactors–supportforengaging,multidisciplinarylearning”.Thisisagreatopportu-nitytocontinuetheworkstartedwiththesupportfromForeignministryandtakeadvantageoftheWWFKoulussa-communityandalltheexperienceandcompetencewehavegained.During2017,WWFalsodistributedthelast400copiesofthesus-tainablefoodpostersthatwerepreparedduringpreviousyear.

Empowerment of young people

WWFFinlandhascontinuedengagingandsupportingyouthempowermentbyor-ganizingtheworkofWWFYouthTeam.WerecruitednewmemberstotheteaminNovemberandnowthereare6seniorand17juniormembers(alltogether23)whotogethercarryonwiththeactivitiesunderthetopicofsustainablefood.TheteamorganizedtheirownEarthHoureventwithmusic,circus,sustainablefoodandfleamarketwhere2500peopleparticipated.Theyalsotookpart in8events(e.g. theWorldVillagefestival)withtheirowndesignedpop-upstandandreachedapprox.2000people.Theyalsocontinuedproducingvegetarianrecipes,photosandcookingvideosontheirwebsitevaikutasyomalla.fi,whichhad12529visitorsinyear2017.

Four representatives of the team took part in the firstWWF Youth Summit inAustriainSeptember.TherewereparticipantsfromtheWWFyouthteamsfromSweden,Germany,SwitzerlandandAustria.Theyouthgroupmemberswerealsoplanning and implementing the Summit programme. As an outcome the youthwereplanningtwoprojectsthattheywillconductinco-operationinyear2018.

Forthefirsttimeever,theCEOofWWFFinlandnominatedarepresentativefromtheYouthteamtoWWFFinland’sBoardofTrustees.Thiswillbeapermanentprac-ticefromnowon.

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The study of perceived environmental competence of WWF Youth Team mem-berswasstartedandthedatawascollectedduringthesummer2017.Alltogether 30previousyouthteammembersansweredinthesurvey.Unfortunately,thesurveyhasnotbeenfinishedyet,butwearehopingtogetthefinalresultsduring2018.

Supporting Eco-clubs

BytheWWFKoulussacommunity(networkofEcoClubs,website,Instagramac-count,Facebookgroupforteachers)wehavecontinuedsupportingEco-Clubsandpupilparticipation.During2017wehad fourco-operationschools that receivedrewardformoreintensiveactivitiesandreportinginsocialmedia.TheFacebookgroupWWFOpehuonehad350membersandWWFKoulussaInstagramaccounthad450followersattheendoftheyear2017.Thewebpagehad2911visitorsdur-ingtheyear.

Theextensionoftheeco-clubshasbeenmoredifficultthanweexpected.LuckilybytheteachertrainingfinancedbytheNationalBoardofEducation,wecannowsup-portnewschoolsandteacherstostartaneco-club.Weexpectthenumberofneweco-clubstoincreasebyatleast50duringtheyear2018.

WedecidednottoproduceavideoaboutSDG,becausethereseemedtobeseveralvideosproducedonthattopicforthesametargetgroupbyotherorganizations.

enGaGInG PeoPLe In ConserVatIon Throughthepartnershipprogramme,WWFhasaimedtoincreasepublicawarenessaboutWWF’swork,suchasprotectingforestlandscapes,empoweringcommunitiesandsecuringwildlifeindevelopingcountries.Inaddition,WWF’stargethasbeentoraiseawarenessaboutsustainableconsumptionhabitsinFinland.

Promoting the importance of biodiversity via TV

Year 2017 was another great but very different year regarding the success ofcommunication within WWF. The biggest change to previous years was thatin spring 2017we finally got green light for the television series thatwehaveplanned for several years about endangered species. OnMay 2017 we signedcontracts with one of the biggest Finnish production company Rabbit Filmsand MTV3 about a prime-time series “Villien jäljillä” with 8 episodes (45 min each)forfall2018.ThehostsoftheseriesarenaturejournalistKimmoOhtonenand actress Pirjo Heikkilä. Each of the episodes focuses on one main iconicendangered species. 4 of 8 episodes focus on our programme areas, Nepaland Indonesia, but all eight episodes have a link to our consumption habitsthrough impacts to the climate change and forest loss. In 2017 we producedfirstthreeepisodesinNepalandtherestoftheepisodeswillbefilmedin2018.WWF Finland was responsible of all the production arrangements in partnercountriesandmostof the resourcesof thepersonresponsible for thepartner-ship programme communication were targeted to this work. This also meant thatwehadtocutdownothertaskssuchasdailycommunicationaboutthepart-nershipprogrammetopics.

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Reaching people through communication

Despiteofthedecreasedworktimefordailycommunicationthenumberofmediahitsrelatedtoprogrammetopicsremainedaroundthesamein2017thanin2016.Thetotalnumberofmediahitswas1560inchosentopics.Themost importantreasonforthiswasWWFFinland’sprogrammerelatedecologicalfootprintworkandcommunicationaround those topics,mainly foodproductionandover-con-sumption.Mediahitsrelatedtothesewerethebiggestshareofearnedpublicityamongprogrammetopics.Earnedpublicityandnewsaboutpoaching,forestlossandsustainabledevelopmentwerethetopicsmostcoveredafterfoodproductionandover-consumption.Thiswasapositiveresultforusasin2017ouraimwastoemphasizeforests,consumptionandsustainabledevelopmentissuesinourcom-munication.

Duringtheyearwepublishednewsandpressreleasesofmanyprogrammerelatedtopics.Thenumberofprogrammerelatedpressreleasesandnewsmaintained inthesamelevelas2016.In2017thenumberofpressreleaseswas28comparedto29in2016.Thetopicswecoveredduring2017includestoriesaboutclosingdowntheivorymarketsinChina,overconsumptiondayinFinlandandglobally,positivetigernewsfromBhutanandThailand,climatechangeconferenceinBonnandnewlydiscoveredspeciesinSouthEastAsia.

Spreading conservation message through social media

ThetraffictoWWF’sprogrammerelatedwebsitesincreasedfurtherin2017com-pared to theaverage fromthreepreviousyears (2014-2016).The totalamountoftraffic towwf.fi increasedwith 100% (thiswasmainly a result fromNorppalive) (1724743sessionsinaverage2014-2016to3389322sessionsin2017).Howeveralsoprogrammerelatedsitesgotmoretraffic:thebiggestraiserswerethesitesofBorneo rainforests (from3036sessions in2014-2016 to4603 in2017), climatechange(from9035to29019),forestloss,AfricanElephant,RhinoandOrangutanwithallatleast50percentmoretrafficthaninpreviousyears.

AnexampleofsingletopicthatgetsalotofcoverageinbothtraditionalandsocialmediaistheEarthOvershootDayinAugust.Forinstance,thereachofonesingleFacebookpostwas236760(170181organic,66579paid).Thepostgained5078reactionsand13821clicks(2984 linkclickstothepressrelease).This isagreatresultforasingletopic.

The overall number ofWWF Finland’s Facebook followers increased to 126 299(compared to 122949 in 2016 and thenumber of Instagram followers increasedto26181(comparedto23500in2016).WWFFinland’sspecialistshavealsoac-tivelyandstrategicallystartedtouseTwitteraspartoftheirwork.HeadofInterna-tionalDevelopmentProgrammeAnneTarvainenhas492followersinTwitterandsheparticipatesinprogrammerelatedtopicsactively.Traditionallythefollowersof WWF Finland are very active, they comment and share the content frequently. ThecirculationofWWFMagazinewas27500intheendof2017.

In2017wekick-startedournewcontentapproachincommunicationandfund-raising.Thereasonforstartingthecontentapproachprocessin2017wastotackle thenegativedevelopmentofalgorithmchanges,weakeningorganicreachandin-creasingcompetitioninsocialandotherdigitalmedia.Theaimwasfirsttodefineandunderstanddifferenttargetgroups.Thesecondstepwastocreatecontentpaths

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andtactical,measurableobjectivesascorepartsofthecontentapproach.WiththehelpofcontentapproachWWFFinlandaimstodevelopitscommunicationmoreimpressiveduringthefollowingyears.AlreadynowtheWWFFinlandhasmore FacebookandInstagramfollowersthananyotherFinnishNGO.

In2017LilliPukka(UniversityofJyväskylä)didherMaster’sthesis“Fromin-fluencing to engaging: the role of communication in protecting endangeredspecies” in Nepal. Aim was to find out what is the role of communication inprotecting endangered species. Case organization was WWF Nepal. Nepalwas chosen since the country has shown significant results when it comes toachieving conservation goals. Based on this study, the role of communicationis seen as important; communication is everywhere and it affects everything.Findings from the thesis will be used to help WWF Finland’s other partnersto strengthen their communications. Thesis was published in January 2018: https://jyx.jyu.fi/dspace/handle/123456789/56896

Fund raising

Year 2017WWF Finland’s main fundraising campaign was aboutWWF’s arc-tic work. In addition to that campaignwe had our ongoing face-to-face (F2F)programandonlinemarketingwholeyearthroughacquiringmonthlyoryearlydonors to us. In the beginning of 2017we had 27 200 active (paying) regular donorsandattheendofyear2017theiramounthadrisento28400,whichmeans +1200newactiveregulardonors (monthlyoryearly).Wehaveconstantly in-creasedourcommunicationtowardsourregulardonorstodecreasetheirattritionand to increase their commitment to our cause through specific regular donornewsletters 3-4 times a year and other automated or personalized e-mailings according to their donorship cause (WWF-general, rainforests, snow leopardsetc.).

In2017wealsohadonedirectmarketingletterinMarchcoveringourinternation-alconservationworkandclimatechangeissues.Thetargetgroupofthisletterwas30000personsaltogetheranditreacheditsfundraisinggoal.Wealsoarrangedamiddle-classdonor trip toNepal toshowcaseourconservationwork inNepaltoinfluentialspokespersons.Thegoalofthistripwasalsotoraisefundsfortheself-financingoftheprogramme.Wealsooffersinglegiftandsocialfundraisingoptionsonourwebpageconstantly,especiallyduringChristmastime.

During 2017, 15% of allWWFprivate supporters (individualmonthly donors)were either Snow leopard or Rainforest supporters, which means they wishedto support topics that are directly related to thePartnershipProgrammework.Theirsharehasbeenthesameinthepastyears.Therehasbeensharp increasein individual donors who wish to support climate change mitigation related work (Climate supporters and “Snow” supporters). However, the biggest share ofindividualdonorsaretheWWF-regulardonors,whosesupportisallocatedon all theWWFwork, includingtheinternationalworkunderthePartnershipPro-gramme.

InteGratIon oF Cross-CUttInG oBjeCtIVes

© naturepl.com / Juan Carlos Munoz / WWF

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InCLUsIVe ConserVatIon During 2017,WWF continued to promote inclusive conservation that empha-sizesgenderandsocialequitywithallprogrammepartnersandinallprogrammeareas. Standard procedures thatWWF promotes is the equal participation ofwomen in programme interventions in all levels (in trainings,meetings, cam-paigns,planninganddecision-makingbodiesandasbeneficiaries).Further,em-phasisonthetraditionallysociallyexcludedgroups(suchasDalitsinNepal)hasbeen given to include them in the programme implementation and in Borneo therightsoftheDayaks,whoaretheindigenouspeople,havebeenstrengthenedto give them ownership and access to their own lands and natural resources.Also,we have been able to facilitate government funding for them to supporttheirtenurerights.

InTanzania,therehasbeenimprovementintermsofwomen’sparticipationindecisionmakingatcommunitylevel.Whilethisachievementisworthcelebrat-ing, there is stillmore to be done inmaking sure that bothmen andwomenhaveequalparticipationacrossthelandscape.Inaverage,outof17villagesinwhichtheprojecthasreacheddirectlythroughtrainingsandindirectlythroughtheactionsofthelocalnetworks,thereare16villagenaturalresourcescommit-teemembers ineachvillage,ofwhichat least5arewomenand inmostcasesthe treasury of the committee is a woman.WWF-Tanzania has continued towork closelywithMJUMITA toaddress thesegapsandworkingwithgovern-menttoimplementandrevisethenationalforestpolicy.Alsoobservedconsist-ent in implementation of village forest governancemonitoring process usingthe dashboard tool in Tunduru has improved. Some improvements are seenonparticipatorydecisions,whicharebasedonhuman rights andgender thataremade at the village assembly and reports are publicly available onnoticeboardsasevidencedbythedashboardreportandstudyongenderspotchecksintegrationof gender equality commissionedbySIDA in2017.The long-termpartnershipof localCSOspartners(MJUMITAandMCDI)hasbeenveryuse-fulinincludingandimplementingrights-basedapproaches.Bothorganizationsworkonrights issuesondailybasisand ithasbeenaverypositiveadvantagefortheprogrammetohavetheirexpertiseasWWFisoftennotfullyequippedtopromoteHRBA.

InNepal,tointegratehumanrightbasedapproachinconservationintervention,anassessmenton relevanceofHRBAapproachand its applicability inWWF’sconservation effort was conducted. The report was then developed as a guideto integrateHR concerns into each stage ofWWFNepal’ program cycle. ThisguidealsoincludeschecklistforauditingprojectfromHRBAperspectiveandas-sessmentofHRBAintegrationstatus.Similarly,tosensitizeWWFstaff,granteesandpartners,5eventsofHRBAsensitizationwereconducted.Intotal64WWFstaffmembersweresensitizedonHRBA.Oftotalstaff,16werefemale.Similarly, 69representativesofpartnerswerealsosensitized.Ofthem11werefemale.Oftotal fiveevents, 1eventwas forWWFprogramstaffsatKathmandu,3eventsforprojectstaffatChitwan,BankeandRasuwa(includingrepresentativesfrommajorgranteepartners)and1eventfortradeunionmembers(BWI-NAC).Withsuch sensitization and guide,WWFNepal has started incorporatingHRBA innewproposals.Further,HRBAguidanceisalsoincludedindetail implementa-tionplantoensurehumanrightsduringimplementation.

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InNepal,specific inclusiveactivities thatwereconducted included for instancesupporttowomen’ssouvenirshopwith52membersinSaurahathatsufferedbad-lyfromflooddamage.Also,vegetabletrainingandtoolkitsupportwasprovidedto25freebondedlaborsinKanchanpurtoenablethemtostartcommercialfarmingenterpriseinfuture.

ensUrInG CLImate sUstaInaBILItyClimatechangemitigationandadaptationareincorporatedinWWF’sworkatdif-ferentlevels,fromglobaltolocalpolicyworktotheenvironmentaleducationandtoconservationworkontheground.Inadditiontodirectclimatechangerelatedinterventions,thegeneralconservationworkthatWWFisdoingisimprovingeco-systemsandhelpingpeopletoadapttoclimatechangeimpacts.

InNepal, climate changeadaptationactivitieswere implemented in three sitessupportingtoincreaseadaptivecapacityof1090households.Ofthem166belongto disadvantaged groups, 227 indigenous and 697 others.Adaptation activitiesincludedforinstancerestoringofdegradedforestareaswithfencingandplantingoffastgrowingbroomgrassandcinnamon,constructionofconservationandre-chargepondswhichenablerechargingwatersourcesaswellashelpinrestorationby increasingsoilmoisturecontentandconstructionofspurs in theriverbankwhich protects river bank cutting and forest land form flash flood. AlsoWWFcontinuedtosupportthenationalREDD-processbysupportingthegovernmentofNepaltofinalizetheProgramdocumentfortheWorldBankforapproval forpaymentsforforestconservationforclimatechangemitigation.

eFFeCtIVe manaGement For resULts

© Karine Aigner/WWF-US

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TheplanningofthenextPartnershipProgramme2018-2021playedcrucialrolein2017 for theWWFFinlandInternationalDevelopment team.TeamtogetherwiththepartnersandWWFFinlandcolleaguesdevelopedjointlynew4-yearpro-gramdocumentwhichwasmorealignedtotheWWFnetworkandourpartners’strategies.Also,theplanningprocesswasdonebyusingparticipatoryapproachwhereWWFpartnersandcolleagueshadacrucialrole.Humanrights-basedap-proachwasusedasabasisoftheplanningprocessanditchallengedustolookourworkthroughdifferentperspective.Anexternalconsultantwasusedto fa-miliarize us onHRBA and help on the planning process especially onResultsBasedManagementofthenewprogramme.

In2017ConservationandDevelopmentOfficerreturnedfromthematernityleave(60%workingtime)whichmadethedevelopmentteamheadcountto4persons.InadditiontheSeniorcommunicationexpertcontributedtotheprogrammewith80%of theworking time.Due to the limitedbudget (still influencedby2016budgetcuts)otherWWFFinlandexperts(environmentaleducationandecologi-calfootprintexperts)contributedpartiallytotheprogramme.AnneTarvainen,HeadofInternationaldevelopmentparticipatedintheleadershiptrainingwhichwasarrangedtotheWWFFinlandmanagementintheautumn2017.Inreality,especially inearly2017,thecontributionfromWWFFinlandexpertsincludingtheConservationDirector andCEOwasbig, but the salary expenseswerenotchargedtothepartnershipprogramme.

Monitoringtripstothepartnercountriesandregionalprogrammesarespecifiedintherespectivechaptersofthisreport.InadditiontothemonitoringtripsAnneTarvainenparticipatedtheAfricaConservationForuminTanzaniainOctober.InthisannualWWFmeetingthecountrydirectorsandconservationdirectorsfromthoseAfricancountrieswhereWWFispresentdiscusswiththenetworkofficeswhich support theseoffices togetherwithWWF international sectoral experts.In 2017 the discussionwas focused on the role ofWWF supporting Protectedareas,youthengagementandAfricawidecampaignsandcommunication.WWFFinland’ssupporttotheregionalforestprogrammeinEastAfricaisconsideredimportantwhenlookingatthewholeWWF’sforestworkinAfricaandithasbeenacknowledgedbytheInternationalWWFForestpractiseaswell.

Thegeneralmonitoringoftheworkinpartnercountrieswasdonethroughregularemailexchange,quarterlyupdatecalls,quarterlyfinancialreportsandthroughhalf-yearnarrativetechnicalreportsthatpartnersproducetotheWWFnetwork.

In2017WWFFinlandprovidedspecific results information toMFAaspartoftheMFA’strialreportingofdevelopmentimpacts.ItwasnotedthattheindicatorvaluesrequestedbyMFAwereeasilyavailablefromWWFreportsandpartnersdatabase.Only in caseof some indicators specific calculationswereneeded toverifyforexamplegenderspecificvalues.

CooperationwithWWFnetworkcontinued in2017 includingclose cooperationwithNordic+offices(Sweden,Norway,DenmarkandUK).FinlandarrangedNor-dic+meeting inFinland inFebruary2017whereexpansionof thegroup to theotherEUcountrieswasdiscussedassharingknowledgeandexperiencesonpublicfundingprogrammesisrelevantalsoforotherEUWWFoffices(Germany,Austria,BelgiumandNetherlands).TheWWFInternationalconservationstrategyareas,practises, providemore focused coordination, knowledge sharing and learningplatforms on 6 areas (Forest,Wildlife, Food, Climate&Energy, Freshwater and

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Oceans) and 3 drivers (Governance,Markets and Finance).WWFFinland newprogramme2018-2021iswellalignedwiththeseglobalstrategicgoalsespeciallyoninclusiveconservationonforestsectorandworkonaddressingenvironmentalcrime.

ClosecooperationwiththeMFAcontinuedin2017andthecountryandregionaldesksaswellassectoraladvisorswerefrequentlymet.Aspartofthemonitoringmissions,therepresentativesoftheEmbassiesweremeteverytime.DuringthesemeetingsanupdateofWWF’sworkwasprovidedandin2017thediscussionwasfocusedon2018-2021plansandpossiblesynergieswiththecountrystrategies.

WWFFinlandaimstoincreasefinancialsupporttoprogrammepartnersinthecomingyears.Thismeansdiversificationofthefundingsources.In2017WWFFinlandandWWFNepaltogetherwithFinnishandNepalesecompaniesdevel-opedaproposaltotheNordicClimateFund,whichwasunfortunatelyrejectedinonthatcallforproposals.

FInanCIaLs

© Emmanuel Rondeau / WWF-UK

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FInanCIaL manaGementIn 2017 WWF Finland International Development programme included onlyPartnershipprogrammefundingasthelastprojectswithprojectfundingendedin2016.MFAfundingfor2017wasaone-yearextensiontoPartnershipprogramme2014-2016whilefundingcyclewasshifted.Therewerenochangesonthefinan-cialmanagementortheprocedurescomparedtothepreviousyears.

WWFFinlandhasagreementswithallpartnerWWFoffices forMFA fundingand partnerWWFofficesmake contractswith local implementation partnerssuchaslocalCSOsandgovernments.WWFFinlandfollowsuptheuseoffundsthroughfinancialreportsthatpartnerssendtoWWFFinlandquarterly.There-portsarereviewedandapprovedbytheprojectcoordinator,administratorandtheheadofprogramme. Ifneeded,additionalquestionsandclarificationsarerequestedfrompartners.Theexpenditurelevelsaswellasbalancesaremoni-toredandreconciledquarterlywithWWFFinland’saccountsbythefinancede-partment togetherwith theadministratorandheadofprogramme.The fundsare transferred to partners in two to four instalments per year depending ontheir expenditure rate.MFA-funded programmes are annually audited in therespectivecountries.Thepartners’auditreports,thecostsofWWFFinlandandtheannualpartnershiplevelreportareauditedinFinlandbyPricewaterhouse-CoopersOy.

In early 2017 MFA assigned KPMG to conduct inspection to some develop-ment cooperationprogrammes inTanzania.WWFFinland’s support to the re-gionalforestprogrammewasselectedasoneoftheprogrammestobeinspected. Theinspectiondidn’tfindanythingalarming.

FInanCIaL sUmmary 2017The total available budget for the Partnership Programme for 2017 was EUR 2006358(MFAsupportEUR1705405), includingnewsupportfor2017andcarryforwardfrom2016.Thedetailedfinancialreportispresentedinannex1.

ThetotalbudgetintheapplicationsubmittedtotheMFAinJune2016andap-provedintheannualmeetingwiththeMFA(11.1.2017)wasEUR1843718.ThatincludedEUR1440000newsupport,EUR127160unallocatedsupport fromprevious years andEUR276558 co-financing.Later in the spring2017,whentheannual reports for2016were readyand theamountof carry forwardswasknown,theplansandbudgetswereupdated.Carryforwardsinpartnercountrieswere added to their budgets. Carry forward fromFinlandwas partly added toWWF Finland’s budget, partlymoved to partner countries. In addition, thereweresomepreviouslyunallocatedfundswhichwereaddedto2017budgets.Forexample,EUR60000fromunallocatedbudgetwasaddedtoEastAfricaForestProgramme’sbudgetandEUR50000wasmovedfromMonitoring&EvaluationbudgetofFinland toEastAfricaForestProgramme topurchasea vehicle (ap-provedbySirpaRajasärkkä,MFA16.12.2016).EUR10854wasnotbudgetedbutwasleftasareserve.Thetotalrevisedbudgetfor2017wasEUR1995504.

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Thetotalcostsoftheprogrammein2017wereEUR1684644.MFAfundingwas85% (EUR 1 431 948) and co-financingwas 15% (EUR252 696). Co-financing included support fromWWFFinland’s private supporters andFinnish compa-nies.

Theamountofcarryforwardsfrom2017to2018isEUR321714(EUR273457MFAprogrammesupport).Spending inpartner countrieswasbetween80and 90%ofthebudget,onlyLivingHimalayasInitiative(LHI)hadlowerspending,70%ofthebudget.LHIcarryforward(aroundEUR25000)wasbecausesomeoftheWaterRiskAssessment(WRA)Relatedactivities(bypartners)werere-sched-uled forMay2018and someactivities in India couldnot be implementedduetochallengesinthefield.InFinland,about50%ofthebudgetontheplanning,monitoring and evaluationwas spent.We had budgeted 20000€ to organizeaprogrammeplanningworkshopwithpartnersbut itwasn’tnecessarybecausepartnershadmadesolidplansfornew4yearprogrammebasedontheirexistingstrategies.Also,wedidn’tneedtotraveltopartnercountriesforplanningasmuchaswehadexpected.Alsosomeofthemonitoringmissionswerepostponeduntilthefundingdecisionofthenewprogrammewasavailable.7500€wasbudgetedto coverWWF’s share of the evaluation of the PHEwork inNepal, FPANwasresponsibleforprocuringtheevaluator.Processwasdelayedandevaluationwasfinalizedonly in2018.WehadalsosomeM&EbudgetforadhocneedsinFin-landorinpartnercountries.SpendingofEcologicalfootprintandenvironmentaleducationinFinlandwas34%ofthebudget.StudyaboutWWFFinland’syouthteam (Master’s thesis)wasn’t completed in2017.Video “SDGs in schools”wasnotproducedsinceitturnedoutthere’salreadyalotofvideosaboutSustainableDevelopmentGoals (SDGs)byyouth.Video introducing the interconnectionofpensionsavingsandclimateimpactsoffossilinvestmentscostlessthanwhatwasbudgetedandforSDGrelatedcommitmentsthescopeofconsultancyworkwasredefinedandmorefocused,whichresultedtolowercosts.

In 2017WWFFinland’s staff’s contribution to thePartnershipprogrammewasmuchbiggerthanwhatwaschargedtotheprogramme.Thisisbecausethebudgetcutwasstillinfluencingouroperations.WWFFinlandwantstoensureitspartners’capacitytoimplementtheprogrammeeffectivelysoinsteadoflimitingfundingofthepartnersthepersonnelcostsofWWFFinlandwerepartlycoveredfromotherfundingsources.TheinvolvementofWWFFinlandexpertstothePartnershipPro-grammewasbiggerthanpreviousyearsduetotheparticipatorypreparationofthenewprogramme.

InadditiontothePartnershipprogrammeWWFFinlandpaysWWFnetworklevyfeetotheWWFnetworkwhichwasEUR566302in2017.ThisfundingisusedtosupportWWFNetwork,especiallyofficesinAfricaandAsia.Inaddition,inseveralpartnercountriesandregionsotherfundingsourcesweresecuredtoexpandandscaleupWWFFinlandfundedactivitiesandapproaches.

50

Programmes Actual costs €

Nepal 602 676

Bhutan 50 105

Indonesia 178 196

Living Himalayas 59 656

East Africa Forest Programme 183 685

Total costs of Programmes 1 074 318

Finland

Personnel 297 894

Communications 85 477

Ecological footprint and environmental education 12 678

Planning, monitoring and evaluation 67 916

Admin 146 361

Total costs of WWF Finland 610 326

Total costs 1 684 644

MFA Support used 1 431 948

WWF Finland self-financing 252 696

exPenses In 2017

annexesannex I DetaILeD FInanCIaL rePort

annex II annUaL rePort oF WWF FInLanD Fy 2017

annex III aUDIt rePort oF the PartnershIP ProGramme 2017

annex IV LoGFrames From PartnershIP ProGramme / Partners

annex V eVaLUatIon rePort, Borneo

annex VI DeVeLoPment PoLICy resULts rePort 2015-2017 WWF FInLanD

© WWF / Steve Morgan

• WWF FInLanD – InternatIonaL DeVeLoPment ProGramme

WWF in numbers

1961WWF was founded in 1961+100

WWF is in over 100 countries,on 6 continents

+5mWWF has over 5 million supporters +25m

WWF has over25 million followerson Facebook, Twitterand Google+

together possible TM