Background Paper 2 Changing Roles of Forests and their Cross- Sectorial Linkages in the Course of Economic Development 1

Abstract

1 This is one of three background papers commissioned by the United Nations Forum for Forests. Background paper 1: Focuses on economic contributions of forests, by Agrawal, Shepherd and Cashore; Background Paper 2: Forests and crosssectorial linkages, by Lele, Karsenty, Benson, Fétiveau, Agarwal and Goswami; and Background paper 3: The role of forests in a future world, by Agrawal et al. Delineation of topics in these categories is not easy nor clear-cut and may be adjusted in the subsequent stages once all draft papers are in. This paper does not explore issues inside the forest sector, confining itself to cross- sectional linkages of forests with other sectors. 2 Uma Lele is independent scholar and was formerly senior advisor in the World Bank’, Alain Karsenty is economist a