Asian Forest Cooperation Organization

What Asian Forest Cooperation Organization does

Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO) is a treaty-based intergovernmental organization headquartered in Seoul, Republic of Korea, with origins in the 2012 ASEAN-ROK Forest Cooperation and formal establishment as a treaty body in 2018. It serves 16 member countries across East, Southeast, South, and Central Asia — including the Republic of Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Brunei, Timor-Leste, Bhutan, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan — by coordinating sustainable forest management, landscape restoration, climate action, and capacity building across public forestry agencies.

AFoCO's product surface is organized around named programs and subsidiary bodies: Landscape Partnership Asia (a multi-stakeholder platform targeting 10 million hectares of integrated dryland management by 2032 with 13 committed countries and management partners CIFOR-ICRAF, Global EverGreening Alliance, and IUCN), the Forest Fire Management in Asia (FFMA) Initiative, the AFoCO Mangrove Initiative, the REDD+ Readiness Initiative, the Asian Forest Living Lab, and the AFoCO Climate Forest Cooperation Framework. Capacity-building infrastructure comprises the AFoCO Regional Education and Training Center (RETC) in Myanmar, the AFoCO Regional Office for Mekong (ROM) in Vietnam, and a stack of training, scholarship, fellowship, STEP, KEYS for Future, and internship programs. Digital tooling includes the AFoCO Carbon Tree Calculator, the Climate Action Matchmaking Platform (CAMP), and an internal Project Management Information System.

Revenue mechanics are those of an intergovernmental nonprofit: recurring assessed contributions from 16 member countries form the base, with ODA-funded seed projects layered on top and supplemented by international climate finance (Green Climate Fund accreditation in pursuit) and private-sector blended finance. AFoCO has secured $50 million from Rabobank (2023) and $20 million from Climate Asset Management (June 2024) for afforestation and carbon-credit projects, alongside corporate CSR partnerships with KT&G, Yuhan Corporation, and SK Innovation. Distribution occurs exclusively through member-country forestry agencies and MoU-based partnerships; no commercial pricing or transactional customers exist.

Name

Asian Forest Cooperation Organization

Legal name

Asian Forest Cooperation Organization

Website

https://afocosec.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AFoCO is a treaty-based intergovernmental organization headquartered in Seoul that coordinates sustainable forest management, landscape restoration, climate action, and capacity building across 16 member countries in Asia through regional programs, training centers, and blended-finance partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Forestry Cooperation

NAICS

Support Activities for Forestry (1153), Administration of Conservation Programs (92412), Environmental Consulting Services (54162)

SIC

Forestry (800), Foreign Governments (8888), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Forestry & Reforestation (BPAGAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Climate, Environment & Natural Resource Management Aid Programs (BPADABAI), Afforestation, Reforestation & Revegetation (ARR) (EUABABAA), Climate Policy, Governance & NDC Support (BPADALAA)

Keywords

• Sustainable forest management
• Forest restoration programs
• Climate change adaptation
• REDD+ implementation
• Forest fire management

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Member Country Contributions: AFoCO operates as an intergovernmental organization funded primarily through contributions from its 16 member countries. Each member country provides financial contributions to support the organization's operations and programs.
2. International Climate Finance: Partnerships with international climate finance mechanisms including Green Climate Fund (GCF) accreditation and blended finance arrangements for afforestation and carbon projects.
3. Private Sector Investment: Direct investments from private sector partners including Climate Asset Management ($20 million), Rabobank ($50 million), and corporate partnerships with KT&G, Yuhan Corporation, and others.
4. ODA-Funded Projects: AFoCO's ODA-funded projects serve as seed initiatives anchoring government-led strategies that build foundation for blended finance and private investment in sustainable forest economies.
5. Carbon Credit Programs: Afforestation projects generating carbon credits, including programs in Laos and Cambodia, with plans to expand to Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Philippines, and Vietnam.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AFoCO is a treaty-based intergovernmental organization that implements forest cooperation projects across 16 member countries in Asia. It delivers sustainable forest management programs, capacity building, climate change mitigation initiatives (including REDD+ implementation), forest restoration activities, and regional knowledge sharing through grants, technical assistance, and convening of national forestry authorities. It does not sell commercial products; rather it channels pooled resources to member-state forestry agencies for on-the-ground project execution.

Product overview

AFoCO is a treaty-based intergovernmental organization headquartered in Seoul, Republic of Korea, committed to strengthening forest cooperation and promoting sustainable forest management to address climate change impacts. The organization operates through a network of named programs and subsidiary bodies: the main initiatives include Landscape Partnership Asia (targeting 10 million hectares of dryland restoration by 2032), Forest Fire Management in Asia (FFMA) Initiative, AFoCO Mangrove Initiative, REDD+ Readiness Initiative, and the Asian Forest Living Lab. AFoCO's capacity building infrastructure comprises the Regional Education and Training Center (RETC) in Myanmar and the Regional Office for Mekong (ROM) in Vietnam. The organization also provides digital tools including the AFoCO Carbon Tree Calculator. AFoCO has 16 member countries and operates regional and individual projects across Bhutan, Mongolia, Brunei Darussalam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Philippines, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Kazakhstan, Singapore, Kyrgyzstan, Thailand, Lao PDR, Timor-Leste, Malaysia, and Viet Nam. The organization formalized in 2018 following its initial iteration as ASEAN-ROK Forest Cooperation (2012).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ASEAN-ROK Forest Cooperation
• Treaty-based AFoCO Operations
• Capacity Building Programs
• Forest Restoration Projects
• Climate Change Mitigation Programs
• Regional Knowledge Sharing Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 10 million hectares to be brought under integrated dryland and drought management by 2032 through Landscape Partnership Asia
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered key, supporting, flagship and core.

• YUHAN CorporationkeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 October 2025Public-private partnership supporting Mongolia's Billion Trees National Movement through reforestation of wildfire-affected forests.
• Yuhan CorporationkeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 September 2025Joint initiative with AFoCO, National Forest Agency of Mongolia, and Billion Trees NGO for Yuhan 4RE project: Restoration of Wildfire-affected Forests in Batsumber, Mongolia.
• Royal Forest Department of ThailandkeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 January 2025Collaborated with AFoCO on 3rd Training of Trainers for Forest Fire Suppression in Kanchanaburi, Thailand. Supported by French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs.
• International Forestry Students' Association (IFSA) KoreasupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025MoU signed to foster youth engagement in forestry and create pathways for future forestry leaders.
• KT&G CorporationkeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 December 2024Signed MoU to advance sustainable forest management. Partnership Agreement includes KT&G Green Globe Project for forest restoration in wildfire-affected areas of Abai Region, Kazakhstan.
• Sarawak Forestry CorporationkeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 April 2024MoU for Mangrove Rewilding Project in Rajang Mangrove National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia. Project funded by SK Innovation as CSR initiative.
• Vietnam National University of ForestrykeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 February 2024MoU for establishment of ASEAN-Korea Garden in Vietnam at Xuan Mai Town, Chuong My District. Project under AFoCO/042/2024.
• Friends of Asia and Asian Forests (FAAF)keyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2024Initiative launched by AFoCO to explore sustainable development and climate solutions for Asia's forests and strengthen cooperation with the private sector.
• Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB), DENR PhilippineskeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 October 2023MoU signed for project on ensuring functioning of cultural ecosystem services in Metro Manila forests.
• Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) PhilippineskeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 October 2023Main government partner for AFoCO projects in Philippines including forest restoration, fire resilience, and cultural ecosystem services projects.
• P4G (Partnering for Green Growth)keyGTM or Marketing Partner · 18 May 2021AFoCO organized official side event at 2021 P4G Seoul Summit titled 'Forest-based Solution - a Green Path to Building Back Better' attracting 100+ participants.
• Korea Forest Welfare InstitutesupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partner for forest healing and conservation benchmarking visits, showcasing Korea's forest welfare model and programs.
• CIFOR-ICRAF (Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 October 2020Founding partner of Landscape Partnership Asia. CIFOR-ICRAF provides scientific expertise and research capacity for dryland restoration and landscape management across Asia.
• Global EverGreening Alliance (GEA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 October 2020Founding partner of Landscape Partnership Asia. GEA brings collective knowledge and technical capacity for landscape restoration and sustainable agricultural intensification.
• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAFoCO cooperates with FAO on managing large-scale forest fires, UN Strategic Plan for forests, and REDD+ initiatives. FAO participation in AFoCO-organized workshops and side events at international forums.
• ITTO (International Tropical Timber Organization)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerITTO co-organizes capacity building workshops with AFoCO on Forest Landscape Restoration in the Asia-Pacific Region. Both organizations work together on accessing climate change finance and carbon benefits for FLR.
• IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of LPA Management Team. IUCN harnesses experience, resources and reach of its 1,400+ member organizations and 15,000+ experts as global authority on natural world status.
• Korea Forest ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost country support and key partner. Korea Forest Service officials participate in AFoCO events, training programs, and provide technical expertise.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO): UN agency with a broad forestry portfolio including forest fire management and REDD+ work. FAO cooperates with AFoCO on large-scale forest fire management and UN Strategic Plan for Forests, representing a much larger incumbent in the same programmatic space.
• Forest Stewardship Council (FSC): Global non-profit setting standards for responsible forest management and chain-of-custody certification. FSC operates a comparable multilateral, multi-stakeholder governance model and is functionally adjacent to AFoCO's sustainable forest management mandate.
• World Resources Institute (WRI): Global research organization with major programs on forests (Global Forest Watch) and climate. WRI operates as a broader-incumbent peer producing the data, monitoring, and policy analysis that complement AFoCO's on-ground implementation role.
• Green Climate Fund (GCF): Multilateral climate finance mechanism. GCF is both a funder and a structural peer for AFoCO, which is pursuing GCF accreditation; once accredited, AFoCO could compete with other accredited entities for forest-related climate finance allocations.
• UN Forum on Forests (UNFF): UN intergovernmental body on forests with global membership. UNFF sits above AFoCO in the global forest governance hierarchy and is a coordination counterpart, with AFoCO implementing regionally what UNFF sets policy-wise globally.

Direct peers

• IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature): Global conservation authority with 1,400+ member organizations. IUCN is part of the LPA Management Team with AFoCO and brings expertise across landscape restoration and biodiversity conservation, directly comparable as a multilateral conservation platform.
• International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO): Treaty-based intergovernmental organization focused on tropical forestry and sustainable forest management. ITTO is AFoCO's closest functional peer: it co-organizes capacity-building workshops on Forest Landscape Restoration and partners on climate finance access for FLR projects across Asia-Pacific.
• UN-REDD Programme: UN collaborative initiative on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation. UN-REDD overlaps directly with AFoCO's REDD+ Readiness Initiative and serves similar intergovernmental audiences in the climate-forestry nexus.
• Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF): Global research organization focused on forestry and agroforestry. CIFOR-ICRAF is a founding LPA partner of AFoCO, providing scientific expertise for dryland restoration and landscape management, making it both a peer and a strategic partner in restoration science.

Emerging players

• Global EverGreening Alliance (GEA): International alliance focused on landscape restoration and sustainable agricultural intensification. GEA is a founding partner of AFoCO's Landscape Partnership Asia, sharing the dryland restoration agenda and operating with a comparable multi-stakeholder coalition model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/afocosec
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCPQ-n-ggcaoaZTYRbEhy4Aw
• Facebookfacebook.com/afocosec
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/asian-forest-cooperation-organization
• Instagraminstagram.com/afocosec

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Asian Forest Cooperation Organization