Explained: Executive Instructions for the Forestry Law

On January 14, the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform issued Decision No. 5, which included the executive instructions for Forestry Law No. 39 of 2023. Similar to Law No. 39 of 2023, these instructions impose restrictions on the actions of private forest owners and require them to obtain licences from the ministry to manage and develop their forests under the ministry’s supervision.

Among these restrictions, the executive instructions mandate that owners submit a licensing application to the zoning unit of the ministry in the governorate, allowing them to manage their private forests. The licensing application must be accompanied by proof of identity, proof of ownership, and a cadastral statement of the property. A licensing application can also be submitted based on a land lease contract certified by the municipality.

The zoning unit, affiliated with the Ministry of Agriculture, operates in forested areas within the agricultural directorates. It is authorised under Law No. 39 of 2023 and its executive instructions to carry out various forestry activities and projects. This unit is distinct from the agricultural extension unit, which is part of the Agricultural Extension Directorate in the Ministry of Agriculture and is responsible for monitoring and training farmers.

If the forestry land is co-owned by a group of owners, the licensing application must be accompanied by a consensual partition document certified by the court. This is an agreement approved by all heirs in the civil court and issued by a judicial decision. The application must also include a written, notarised commitment from the applicant, declaring that they will not infringe upon the shares of other partners, under penalty of having their licence cancelled if opposition from any partner arises later, and a commitment to adhere to the Forestry Law and its executive instructions. If the private forests include co-owned lands that have not yet undergone delimitation and census process, the applicant must submit a cadastral statement issued by the Survey Office in the Land Record and a plan specifying the location and coordinates of their share of the property.

Another restriction imposed by the executive instructions requires private forest owners to obtain a licence if they wish to collect medicinal and aromatic plants from their land. This measure aims to preserve forest species from extinction. However, this contradicts Regulation No. 186 of 1926 on Land Delimitation and Census, which considers the property to include all plants and trees on it, thus making them the owner’s right. Consequently, the licensing requirement restricts the owner from benefiting from the fruits of their land, which is a fundamental aspect of property ownership rights.

The executive instructions specify three situations where a private forest owner is prohibited from utilising their forest land:

1. If the forest plants are rare or endangered species: The determination of this is made by a decision issued by the Minister of Agriculture.
2. If the private forest is a natural extension of state forests or within the buffer zone of state forests: This buffer zone includes lands within 200 metres of the state forests, with forest coverage exceeding 70 percent.
3. If the removal of forest by the owner causes erosion in adjacent state forests: For example, if an owner of a private forest adjacent to state forests wishes to remove some trees, it is prohibited if it leads to degradation and erosion of the state forests’ soil.

On the other hand, depriving the owner of utilising their forest grants them the possibility of receiving compensation, albeit through a complex process outlined in the executive instructions. The zoning unit must send a dossier on the prohibition of the owner’s use of specific forests to the Agricultural Directorate. This directorate coordinates with the Ministry of Finance, the Farmers’ Union, the General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research, and the General Commission for the Management and Protection of State Properties established under Law No. 43 of 2023. These entities form a committee to review the prohibition case and determine the appropriate compensation. The committee may propose compensation for the period of temporary restriction on forest use, submitting the proposal to the Minister of Agriculture, who can issue a decision and refer the dossier to the sub-committee on compensation under the Ministry of Agriculture.

According to the executive instructions, the committee can propose the complete expropriation of the property if deemed necessary. This proposal is then submitted to the minister, who issues a decision and refers the dossier to the subcommittee on expropriation in the Ministry of Agriculture. It is noteworthy that Forestry Law No. 39 does not mention the possibility of expropriating private forest land. Therefore, it seems unusual for the executive instructions to allow for the expropriation of private forests when the original law does not include this provision. This is considered an illegal overreach, especially since expropriation results in the owner being permanently deprived of their property without real guarantees of fair compensation.

Additionally, another restriction imposed by the executive instructions is that private forest owners must obtain a licence to reclaim their land for agricultural use if its forest coverage is less than 40 percent. They are also bound to preserve rare forest species. After submitting the application, a committee consisting of the head of the zoning unit in the governorate and employees from the Ministry of Agriculture will inspect the land to be reclaimed. The committee will determine the condition of the land, its forest coverage percentage, the type and number of trees to be cut for reclamation, the required time for this, and the reclamation period. Once the licence is granted, work must commence within three months, otherwise the licence will be considered void. Land reclamation in this manner is not subject to the provisions of the Agricultural Land Reclamation Law No. 29 of 2012.