An Ad hoc Expert Group (AHEG) on International Arrangement on Forests (IAF) held a meeting in Nairobi on February 24-28, 2014 as part of inter-sessional activities of UNFF. Outputs from the meeting will form the framework for evaluating the performance and effectiveness of IAF at the eleventh session of the UNFF (UNFF 11) in May 2015.
During the meeting, several presentations were made to guide the discussions. AFF Executive Secretary, Prof. Godwin Kowero, gave a key note speech titled: “The future of international arrangement on forests and potential links to sustainable development goals.”  The presentation covered a wide range of issues including justification for IAFs existence, prominence of forestry issues on the global scene, restructuring IAFs to be more responsive and accountable, as well as forestry and sustainable development goals.
The AHEG is tasked to review the performance and effectiveness of the IAF within the context of Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) resolutions 2000/35 and 2006/49, as well as the attainment of the multi-year programme of work. To this end, AHEG will review the inputs provided by various stakeholders, as well as the outcome of the work of the independent assessment of the IAF, and based on this review put forth a set of recommendations providing a strategic direction on the function and institutional arrangements of the IAF for the period beyond 2015 to UNFF11.