The efficient management of forest resources is a vital element of the global efforts to reduce carbon emissions and tackle climate change, with Moldova being part of this process, World Bank Country Manager for Moldova Melanie Marlett said in a regional conference centering oфсn the creation of partnerships in implementing the forest law, which is held in Chisinau. According to World Bank estimates, the global losses caused by illegal tree cutting total more than US$10 billion a year. Such a situation requires firm actions aimed at strengthening the national and international forest management mechanisms, said the World Bank representative Arcadie Capcelea. “Our aim is to conduct investigations in the field and punish those who violate the forest law,” said another representative of the Bank, Tuuca Castren. The information presented at the conference shows the woodlands in Moldova in 2002 constituted 10.3%. By 2010, this figure might rise to 13.2%. The World Bank offered the Government assistance in implementing a number of projects in the forestry sector, including soil conservation and community wood planting projects. The conference held in Chisinau is part of the EU-funded Improving Forest Law Enforcement and Governance in Eastern Europe and Russia Program. It brought together experts from 13 countries. The program is implemented by the World Bank in partnership with World Wide Fund for Nature and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.