UN forest program hits political snags

A United Nations program to curb deforestation and carbon emissions in Indonesia has improved forest management, but is being hampered by a "political economy based on forest destruction", a New Zealand researcher said on Wednesday.

Dr Andrew McGregor of Victoria University worked with a team examining the impact and complications of the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation program, developed through the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and voluntary carbon markets.

More than 50 countries were piloting the program around the world. Some, including Indonesia which has one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, actively generated carbon credits for voluntary markets.