Africa: Eco-labels 'greenwashing' forest exploitation

'Eco-label fatigue' is setting in as green logging certification schemes are undermining proper government management of forest resources while 'greenwashing' private ownership of these public resources, critics say. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), created in 1993, is an internationally recognised scheme for the certification of the responsible management of forests. FSC-certified territory in sub-Saharan African countries has more than doubled, from three million ha in April 2008 to 7,6 million ha in Aprril 2011. Yet, African and international civil society organisations are increasingly wary of what some nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) call 'eco-label fatigue', and particularly of the FSC labelling scheme.