A global framework to enhance national forest biosecurity strategies

The global forest area is just over 4 billion hectares, which represents 31 percent of the total land area. Around 10 percent of the world’s forests are allocated for biodiversity conservation, and 30 percent are used primarily for production (FAO, 2022). Forests also provide vital ecosystem services, such as combating desertification, protecting watersheds, maintaining biodiversity, and enhancing carbon sequestration. It is critically important to protect these valuable resources from disturbances such as fires, pollution, invasive species, insects, and diseases. Today, addressing the movement of invasive species is a global issue that requires cooperation and action at the national, regional, and global levels. Formulating and implementing a biosecurity strategy, which can protect against and mitigate this threat, has become a crucial task. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defines the term biosecurity as a strategic and integrated approach to analysing and managing risks to human, animal and plant life and health, and associated risks to the environment (FAO, 2003). A biosecurity failure in one country will often lead to problems in other countries, particularly where shared terrestrial boundaries lack natural ecological barriers. Therefore, biosecurity is emerging as one of the most urgent issues faced by countries globally. FAO’s work on biosecurity is part of the wider One Health approach, which aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals, and ecosystems, including the health of forests. Drawing on national and organisational best practices, FAO alongside its partners will develop a multi-stakeholder approach that targets decision-makers, policy makers, educators, forest managers and communities. The guide will provide a framework for the development and effective implementation of national forest biosecurity strategies, while fostering a shared culture of biosecurity knowledge and action.