The Independent Forest Monitoring Network (JPIK) is a monitoring network consisting of civil society organizations in Indonesia. JPIK has an active role as an “independent monitor” in the implementation of the SVLK. Its existence can be considered to be the key to ensuring the credibility of the SVLK, especially in encouraging processes, developing standards and implementing guidelines from SVLK in Indonesia.

The Timber Legality Verification System (SVLK) is one of the initiatives that has emerged to tackle illegal logging and promote legal timber. In particular, this initiative aims to ensure that wood and wood products produced in Indonesia come from verified legal sources. Since 2 years ago, the Government of Indonesia has adopted the SVLK and its implementation began in September 2010, including as part of the Assessment of Performance of Sustainable Production Forest Management (PK PHPL). In its journey, in 2011 the regulations relating to the SVLK have been revised to improve its implementation in Indonesia.

Based on experience so far, JPIK monitors often face a number of obstacles, both in conducting monitoring activities, and when submitting complaints to the results of monitoring. This constraint is mainly related to the issue of information disclosure and handling complaints over monitoring results, especially those that should be provided by the parties related to the performance evaluation of forestry business actors. Some important information that is often difficult to obtain in general is in the form of complete documents on RKT and RKL of forest concession management units, complete documents on forestry industry RPBBI, and maps of concessions according to plan and realization.

In relation to these conditions, Forest Watch Indonesia as the JPIK Secretariat held a meeting in the form of a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) in order to prepare a fulfillment framework of the results of monitoring and refining the SVLK system in Indonesia, which was held on September 6, 2012 at Mirah Hotel Bogor.

In addition to preparing a monitoring plan, this meeting is also needed to find solutions related to the constraints of information disclosure and response to the submission of complaints from independent monitors. The FGD will also be a forum to follow up on several recommendations for improving the implementation of the SVLK which were discussed earlier in the JPIK internal meeting which was held on 3-5 April 2012 in Jakarta.

The expected goal of this FGD is to build communication and understanding between the parties (Ministry of Forestry, certification bodies, KAN, and JPIK) related to information disclosure and handling complaints from independent monitors on SVLK implementation, providing a space for delivering recommendations from JPIK related to improving SVLK implementation , preparing a monitoring plan for the subsequent SVLK implementation to be carried out by JPIK. While the expected results are the building of the commitment of the parties in information disclosure and handling complaints against the implementation of SVLK, the realization of understanding from the parties on recommendations for improvement of SVLK implementation delivered by JPIK, compilation of monitoring plans for SVLK implementation by JPIK members.

The event was organized by Forest Watch Indonesia (FWI) and the Independent Forest Monitoring Network (JPIK) with support from the Multistakeholder Forestry Program (MFP-DfID).