UNEP-WCMC informs on illegality risks from five timber source countries

The UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) has released the first five in a series of country overviews that aim to aid the implementation of the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR). These overviews, which are available for Brazil, China, Myanmar, the Russian Federation and Ukraine, are produced for the European Commission.

European Commission reports on EUTR progress

The European Commission has released the second report on the implementation of the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR), covering the period March 2015 to February 2017. The report reveals steady progress after four years of EUTR application. It is based on the reports from the 28 EU Member States and Norway.

South Korea closes market to illegally-harvested timber

South Korea has become the latest country to implement legislation to prevent imports of illegally-harvested timber.

Timber companies – your help is needed

Since 2016, NEPCon’s project 'Supporting Legal Timber Trade' has aimed to show timber-related businesses how to align with the EU Timber Regulation and discover possibilities of gaining a competitive edge.

Indonesian forest monitors report on timber legality issues

Indonesia’s Independent Forest Monitoring Network (JPIK) says the country’s timber legality assurance system (SVLK) has led to “significant changes in improving good forest governance” but still has weaknesses and must be continuously improved to ensure its credibility and accountability.

EUTR Implementation: UNEP-WCMC releases Feb-March 2018 Briefing Note

The UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) has released a Briefing Note on developments relevant to the implementation and enforcement of the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR). The note, which covers the period from February to March 2018, was developed by UNEP-WCMC as a consultant of the European Commission in close cooperation with the competent authorities of the European Union (EU) Member States.

Ghana, EU Progress on Implementation of their Voluntary Partnership Agreement

The aide memoire of the ninth session of the Joint Monitoring and Review Mechanism (JMRM), which took place on 27 and 28 February 2018, in Accra, Ghana, has been released.

EU and China agree on their 2018 cooperation under the BCM

China and the European Union (EU) are strengthening their efforts to address illegal logging and promote legal timber trade through their Bilateral Coordination Mechanism (BCM) on Forest Law Enforcement and Governance. The 9th meeting of the BCM took place in Beijing, China, on 7 March 2018.

Greater participation of women for improved forest management in Liberia

An article published in Front Page Africa describes the progress made by Liberia towards good forest governance since the end of the 14-year civil war, highlighting the ‘gradual rise’ of women’s participation in the forest sector. The writer outlines the benefits of greater participation of women in decision-making processes related to forests.

Commentary: Ending deforestation requires these four actions

In a commentary published by Mongabay, ecologist Dan Nepstad underlines that without support to building strong institutions, ‘it may not be possible to further curb tropical deforestation.’ He writes: ‘governments control the biggest levers for influencing the decision that is made every year by millions of people who live in or work in tropical forests–to cut trees or not.’