EU,Guyana, forest and trade in timber products

The EU and the Republic of Guyana signed a voluntary parthership on forest law enforcement, governance and trade in timber products.  This partnership aims to:

1. provide a legal framework aimed at ensuring that all imports into the Union from Guyana of timber products covered by this Agreement have been legally produced;
2. promote trade in timber products.

It requires a FLEGT licence to import the wood originating from Guyana; indeed it lays down that: “…FLEGT licensing scheme establishes a set of procedures and requirements aimed at verifying and attesting, by means of FLEGT licences, that timber products shipped to the Union from Guyana were legally produced. In accordance with Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 and this Agreement, the Union shall accept such shipments from Guyana for import into the Union only if they are covered by FLEGT licences sustainable forest management, public awareness, involvement and participation in environmental issues, role of women in environmental management and development…” and “…The licensing authority shall issue FLEGT licences as a means of attesting that timber products have been legally produced…”.

The FLEGT license system is an important area of trade compliance which is encompassed in the AEO management.

The principles are: a) sustainable forest management; b) public awareness, involvement and participation in

environmental issues; c) role of women in environmental management and development; d) role of indigenous peoples and their communities and other local communities in environmental management and development.