Panama Country Case Study

Panama Country Case Study August 2006 Anne Larson Panama Country Case Study Table of Contents Introduction .................................................................................................. 3 Status of forest ownership and tenure in the country .................................................. 4 Official distribution of forest tenure .................................................................................. 4 Differences between FRA data, the data included in “Who Owns,” and the data we find in our current search, and why ........................................................................................................ 6 Gendered effects of tenure status. .................................................................................. 6 Key elements of the policy and regulatory framework regulating indigenous and other local community tenure/forestry rights ................................................................................................... 7 Motives, extent, level and scale of decentralization or devolution of rights ................................... 7 Scale of forest sector decentralization or devolution with respect to particular forest assets .............. 8 Initiatives recently completed, underway or proposed to reform tenure ....................................... 8 Impacts of tenure reform................................................................................... 9 Forests and poverty in the country ...................................................................... 10 Existing data or inferential information regarding poverty and forests ........................................10 Key government initiatives or programs to reduce poverty in forest areas...................................11 Key community or local civil society proposals and/or initiatives to reduce poverty ........................12 RRI Partner initiatives if any .........................................................................................12 Impacts of policy reforms and projects.................................................................. 13 Key threats to local rights and livelihoods .............................................................. 13 Key opportunities to advance RRI Tenure and Poverty Goals....................................... 13 References ................................................................................................. 15 In 2005, founding members of the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) coalition agreed to undertake a scoping program to assess and understand the realities, challenges and opportunities in tropical forest countries around the world. The program, called the RRI Listening, Learning and Sharing Launch (LLSL), was designed as a series of consultations and conversations that could serve as an “ear to the ground” to understand the concerns and goals of community organizations, civil society organizations, and governments. The goal was to bring these voices and experiences to help shape the global and regional priorities for RRI. LLSL was organized around the three key regions in which RRI is engaged – Africa, Asia and Latin America. In a series of scoping studies and participatory consultations, RRI Partners identified key trends, issues and opportunities in policy, tenure and livelihoods in forest areas. The dialogues, workshops, background papers and synthesis reports prepared as part of the LLSL inform RRI strategy and planning in each region and created new and stronger links between RRI Partners and local civil society organizations. A selection of the synthesis reports and background papers are publicly available on the RRI website at www.rightsandresources.org. This report was completed as a part of the Listening, Learning and Sharing Launch program. The ideas and information presented here are those of the authors and are not necessarily shared by Rights and Resources Initiative or the Partners in the RRI coalition. 2 Panama Country Case Study Introduction Panama is the southernmost country in Central America and has a total land area of 75,520 km2 (FAO 2004). Its total population was 3.2 million in 2004, with a GDP of $13.7 billion (World Bank 2006a). It is bounded on the north by the Caribbean, on the east by Colombia, on the south by the Pacific Ocean and on the west by Costa Rica. A central mountain range runs through the country from west to east, dropping to sea level on both sides of the Panama canal; western elevations rise to 3,000 m, whereas elevations to the east of the canal are lower, reaching only 1,000 m. The northern Caribbean coast is wetter than the Pacific and is the location of the majority of the country’s tropical forests. The forest industry is small, accounting for only 0.5% of GDP in 2000 (Lebedys 2004). In 2002, roundwood production totaled 73,000 m3, with raw material coming mainly from natural forests and imports. In 1999 the timber industry was essentially comprised of 31 sawmills, 3 plywood factories and 371 joinery and general carpentry workshops (FAO n.d.). Panama’s economy has depended on the Panama Canal and the service sector for many years, with services occupying 74-79% of GDP from 2002-2004 (World Bank 2006). Investments or even development plans for rural production or for rural areas in general have been largely neglected. The development of the first national forest strategy has been under negotiation since 2003. At the same time, Panama is among the most advanced Latin American countries in terms of the land tenure rights of its indigenous populations. Five autonomous indigenous comarcas have been recognized, each with its own law. Nevertheless, in spite of high average income levels and an HDI rank much higher than the other Central American countries in this study (see World Bank 2006b, UNDP 2006), rural poverty levels are high and are particularly associated with remote and indigenous areas. New efforts have been made in the past decade to address rural land tenure and poverty issues, and to protect the country’s important forest cover. These efforts appear to have been primarily conservation oriented, though some current initiatives are beginning to place greater emphasis on sustainable resource use. The priority of national development policies, however, is on privatization and attracting foreign investment. This includes the recent passage of a coastal lands law that could grant 90-year leases on public lands and permit substantial development of coastal and island areas. It is being vigorously opposed by environmental and other groups. Mining concessions also pose an on-going threat to indigenous and other rural lands. 3 Panama Country Case Study Map 1 - Forest cover, Panama (Source: FAO n.d.) Status of forest ownership and tenure in the country Official distribution of forest tenure FAO (2006) states that Panama has 4.3 million hectares in forests, with 90.4% on private land and only 9.6% on public land. This includes over 3.3 million hectares of mature natural forests and almost one million of fragmented forests (FAO n.d.). Mature natural forest covers 45% of land area, and total forest cover is 58%. Forest plantations account for 40,000 hectares; average annual deforestation between 1990 and 2000 is estimated at 52,000 ha (FAO n.d.). More than 25% of the country’s land area is designated as protected areas. Just 10% of natural forests have been designated as production forests and 47% as protection forests; most of the rest has not been classified (FAO 2006). 4 Panama Country Case Study Interestingly, the 1994 Forestry Law states that state forest patrimony includes all natural forests, the soils upon which these forests are located, state lands with preferential aptitude for forestry and plantations established by the state on state lands. Nevertheless, under certain conditions state forest lands can be titled, and regulations for forest management clearly recognize private property rights to forests. In addition to the 10 provinces of Panama, the country also has several indigenous comarcas totaling 20% of the national territory. The indigenous population, representing seven well-defined indigenous groups, comprises 10% of the Panamanian population. In descending order by population, these include: Ngabes (60%), Kunas (21.6%), Emberá, Buglé or Bokata, Wounaan, Nasos (Teribes or Tlorios) and Bri- Bri (Moreno 2005). As of 2000, there were five comarcas: three comarcas of the Kuna plus Embera-Wounaan in the East (all four in Darién), and Ngabe-Bugle in the West. About half of the indigenous population is located inside the comarcas. The first comarca, which existed prior to the Panamanian state, was Kuna Yala, which was recognized by Panama in 1938 and became the model for the others. Other possible comarcas are under discussion, such as Naso-Teribe in Bocas del Toro in the West, and Takarkunyala in another Kuna area (luventicus 2003). The Panamanian 1972 Constitution declared, for the first time, that “indigenous lands must be given as property,” rather than through usufruct agreement. “Using this disposition, the Legislative Assembly has recognized indigenous lands through a special law for each indigenous group, in which the legal figure of the comarca or collective landholding is created… Each is governed by an executive decree, which gives the indigenous group wide latitude for administering its lands, under the general rules established in the legislative act creating that comarca.” In spite of its “superior legal framework” for indigenous land tenure, Panama

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