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ClientEarth Communications

15th April 2020

Forests
Communities & forests

Lawyers wait on detail of Republic of Congo’s new forest law

ClientEarth has cautiously welcomed the Republic of Congo passing a new law hoped to promote more sustainable management of the country’s vast forest resources.

Legal experts from the environmental law charity have congratulated the Congolese parliament for passing the new forest code in a motion last week called amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Lawyers and campaigners now await the updated forest code’s presidential approval, which will be needed for the law to enter into force, and for the legal details to be made public.

ClientEarth has spent the past eight years working with local organisations to help draft the law to manage forest resources more sustainably and bolster the rights of the communities that depend on them.

The forests of the Congo Basin play a key role in stabilising the planet’s climate and it is hoped the new law will also include measures to help the country address global warming.

ClientEarth Law and Policy Advisor Tanja Venisnik said: “We look forward to the new forest code receiving presidential approval and for the details to be made public.

“As ever, the devil will be in the detail and we’ll need to reserve judgement on how effective this new legislation will be until it’s in the public domain.”