Forest Data Without Borders: Latin America and the Caribbean Strengthen Their Commitment to Forest Transparency

To advance the transparency of forest data and strengthen their National Forest Monitoring Systems (NFMS), nearly 20 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean are meeting this week in Guatemala for the second in-person gathering of the Latin American and Caribbean National Forest Inventory Network (IFN-LAC).

Organised by the IFN-LAC Network, with the support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Forest Research Institute (ICIFOR) of INIA-CSIC, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) through the project “Building global capacity to increase transparency in the forest sector (CBIT-Forest): accelerating capacity-building, knowledge-sharing and awareness raising”, the “AIM4Forests: Accelerating Innovative Monitoring for Forests” programme funded by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the event aims to support the institutionalisation of forest data in the region and to promote the voluntary update of national reports for the 2025 Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA).

During the opening session, Mr Rafael Zavala, FAO Representative in Guatemala, highlighted that “forest inventories are the main tool for proper and relevant assessment, allowing us not only to conserve and protect more effectively, but also to live better with our natural resources.”

Supporting flexible reporting: comparable, accessible and decision-oriented data

One of the key objectives of the workshop is to provide direct technical support to countries choosing to voluntarily update their FRA reports. FRA 2025 places particular emphasis on the use of national data that are collected in a transparent, standardised and verifiable manner. The IFN-LAC Network serves as a regional technical reference in this regard, promoting methodological harmonisation and the generation of common indicators.

The update of national reports to FRA is a voluntary process for FAO member countries, aligned with internationally recognised governance frameworks. These are cooperative technical agreements that highlight the strategic value of forest data, helping to showcase national progress in conservation, restoration and the sustainable management of forest resources, while also supporting public policy development and the mobilisation of financial resources.

FRA data are used to monitor progress on global forest-related commitments, such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris Agreement, the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), all of which recognise the importance of forest information for sustainable development. Additionally, the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) endorses FRA as the official data source to assess progress towards the Global Forest Goals.

New publication: Towards the institutionalisation of forest data

As part of the event, FAO is launching a new publication entitled “Towards the institutionalization of forest data: The importance of data management and sharing.” This guide offers recommendations for integrating NFMS into institutional frameworks, improving data governance, and establishing effective protocols for data access, use and dissemination.

The publication highlights the key role of regional spaces, such as the IFN-LAC Network, in building an interoperable, open and results-oriented forest data system that responds to both national needs and growing international demands for high-quality information.

More information about the publication is available here.

Open data, innovation, and regional cooperation

Throughout the event, countries will explore innovative approaches to data collection and analysis — such as the use of non-destructive tools like terrestrial LiDAR and ForeStereo — and share experiences on how to make forest data publicly accessible, thereby promoting open science, accountability, and evidence-based decision-making.

A dedicated session will focus on the exchange of good practices in open forest data, linking regional efforts with global initiatives such as FAO’s Food and Agriculture Microdata (FAM) Catalogue.

Harmonising indicators: forest biodiversity and volume

This second gathering reaffirms the IFN-LAC Network’s role as a platform for technical capacity-building in the region. In this context, a training session on the Harmonised Biodiversity Assessment will be held, facilitated by ICIFOR-INIA-CSIC, FAO, the Federal University of Amazonas (UFAM) and INFOR (Chile). This session builds on earlier capacity-building efforts launched in 2022, focusing on biodiversity indicators derived from National Forest Inventories.

Additionally, the Tenth Harmonisation Meeting will take place, focusing on the forest volume variable. It will include practical sessions on the use of non-destructive technologies to update volume and biomass equations, thereby strengthening countries’ technical capacities in advanced forest estimation.

Strengthening networks for improved data management

Beyond the technical agenda, the event will also serve to define the next phase of the IFN-LAC Network’s work plan, to be approved at the upcoming General Assembly in August. This second regional meeting consolidates South-South cooperation processes.

The programme also includes exchanges with representatives of other regional networks, such as ENFIN (Europe), the North American Forest Commission’s National Forest Inventory and Monitoring Group (COFAN), and the newly in developed National Forest Inventory Network in Asia. These interactions aim to reinforce interregional collaboration among countries facing common challenges in forest monitoring.