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The IMM is undertaking a scoping study to assess trade and market impacts of FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) in the furniture sectors of EU and VPA supplier countries.
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Although EU imports of timber products increased to the highest level in a decade in 2017, imports from tropical countries continued to decline.
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In 2017, Ghana’s timber product export value fell 16% to €190 million while volume fell 15% to 397,000 m3. Exports fell to all regions except the Middle East. The decline in exports also affected nearly all product groups, the only exception being higher value tertiary products such as mouldings and flooring. Given that the fall in exports during 2017 affected nearly all markets and product groups and occurred at a time of generally rising global demand, it is likely that the trend was due more to supply-side than demand-side factors.
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Alongside regular surveys of market opinion to assess the market impact of FLEGT licensing, IMM is implementing near-real time monitoring of trade flow statistics. This monitoring shows that EU imports of a few Indonesian timber products began to trend upwards in the months following introduction of FLEGT licensing in November 2016, in some cases the rising trend was immediate, in others it only began to be apparent from around the middle of 2017.
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Ghana has launched the public Timber Transparency Portal that provides access to information on logging in Ghana. The Portal can be accessed by stakeholders around the globe. It is part of governance reforms in the forest sector as a result of the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) between Ghana and the EU, according to a press release from Civic Response.
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Ghana and the European Union are currently bringing final steps underway for completing VPA implementation in the country. The latest meeting of the Joint Monitoring and Review Mechanism (JMRM) at the end of February decided the tender process for the Final Joint Assessment of Ghana’s Legality Assurance System (GhLAS) should be completed no later than 1 May; at that time, consultants should begin evaluating the system.
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The cargo shipment test evaluating export and import procedures in preparation for the transport of Ghanaian FLEGT-licensed timber to Europe showed that, while some administrative issues need addressing and some procedures fine-tuning, the Ghanaian system works well in principle.
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UK government recognition of FLEGT-licensing in timber procurement policy as evidence of legality and sustainability on an equal footing with FSC and PEFC schemes is a major credit to the initiative. However, more market promotion, communication and education is needed before a FLEGT licence achieves the broad awareness and acceptance levels of these ‘brand-leading’ certification schemes. That’s the view of David Hopkins, managing director of the UK Timber Trade Federation (TTF).
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Workshop 3 of the First IMM Trade Consultation held in London on 8 March 2018 involved a multi-national discussion of the status of FLEGT licensing as a criterion in government timber procurement policy (TPP). It also looked at prospects and methods for licensing to achieve greater and more widespread recognition in TPP in the future.
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Workshop 2 of the First IMM Trade Consultation held in London on 8 March 2018 consulted representatives of large retail companies, furniture importers, agents, and furniture associations on the main factors determining purchasing decisions and the competitive position of Indonesia.
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Workshop 1 of the First IMM Trade Consultation held in London on 8 March 2018 focused on reasons for the 15-year decline in tropical wood import volume and share in the EU, future market prospects and the role FLEGT licensing could play in reversing the market trend.
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The IMM EU FLEGT VPA Trade Consultation at the London Building centre underlined the range of timber sector stakeholders interested in learning more about the VPA initiative – and where it’s headed in the future.