A new partnership has been created in an effort to combat the "major threats" that currently face forests in the southern and eastern Mediterranean region.

The establishment of the Collaborative Partnership on Mediterranean Forests was confirmed at the Second Mediterranean Forest Week taking place in Avignon, France. More than 10 institutions and groups - including the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) - will look to combat issues across six countries.

Morocco; Algeria; Tunisia; Syria; Lebanon; and Turkey are to be the focus of the partnership, where up to 1 million hectare (2.5 million acres) of forest are lost to fire each year. FAO Forestry Department assistant director general Eduardo Rojas-Briales said: "It is urgent that we join efforts to restore and preserve their functions for future generations."