**9. Conclusion**

In conclusion, although the initial stages of its development seemed to progress rapidly, the continued development and implementation of the SFM strategy framework has been delayed and is far from complete, , with some major elements progressing only slowly, if at all. Greater time and effort spent obtaining clarity of roles and support from all stakeholders and actors at the initial stages of the process, while slowing the early stages, would likely have led to more progress by this time.

Meanwhile, the forest industry in Galicia is facing increasing pressure by markets and public opinion to demonstrate that it has adopted sustainable practices. The Galician private forest sector, which is moving in this direction despite the difficulties in Galicia caused by the very small holdings and fragmented ownership, has begun to realize that the full implementation of the SFM strategy framework could mitigate some of forest sector's problems in this regard and thus might be critical to its long-term survival. Given that some positive results that correlate very well with the government's strategy framework have been achieved by private initiatives in a short period of time, there is reason to be optimistic that more and faster progress may be made in the near future.
