Forestry Commission is a parastatal under the Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry (MECTHI).  The Commission was created in 1957 through the Forest Act (Cap 19:05).  The organisation derives its mandate from the Forest Act (Cap 19:05) and the Communal Land Forest Produce Act (Cap 19:04), two pieces of legislation that make provisions for the development, conservation, protection and sustainable utilization of all forest resources for the socio-economic development of Zimbabwe.

 Forests not only contribute to economic growth, job creation, and poverty reduction, but they also support other key sectors of the economy such as Energy, Agriculture, Tourism and the role of forests in conserving and protecting important water sources is critical for domestic and industrial water demands including hydro-electric power generation.