CPD Specifier May 2015 issue September 2014 | Page 33

Timber

Helping timber industries
come to the right decision

EU Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade
In the past 12 months, EU governments, including the UK, have introduced major new domestic legislation to tackle the global trade in illegal
timber - the European Timber Regulation (EUTR). This EU-wide regulation
implements existing EU Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade
(FLEGT) legislation that requires importers of timber from countries with
whom the EU has signed a Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) to
obtain a FLEGT license to import timber into the region.

Established in 1972, the London Office of the Ghana Forestry Commission is tasked with promoting timber trade as well as seeking investments
opportunities in forest plantation, wildlife, ecotourism and other sectors on
behalf of its parent company, Ghana Forestry Commission.
Dr Mohd Nurudeen Iddrisu, Head of the Ghana Forestry Commission
(London Office), commented: “Ghana has a strong Forestry Commission
(GFC), as well as a long history of forest management and capacity for
forest research. The Ghana Government is keen to attract more investments into the forestry and wildlife sector as well as seek technical collaboration with reputed international organisations.

Forming a central element of the EU’s strategy in the fight against illegal
logging, a VPA is a bilateral trade agreement between the EU and a timber-exporting country outside the EU. It aims to guarantee that any wood
exported from a timber-producing country to the EU comes from legal
sources, and also to help the partner country