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Les voix des femmes s’élèvent dans le secteur forestier ivoirien

13 May 2022

La Facilité Afrique-Amérique latine de l’Institut européen de la forêt publie un article qui décrit la situation des femmes dans le secteur forestier ivoirien, ainsi que le renforcement de leur rôle dans les négociations d’un Accord de Partenariat Volontaire (APV) FLEGT entre la Côte d’Ivoire et l’UE. Ces négociations sont en train de reconduire la gestion des forêts ivoiriennes.

*Dialogue avec des femmes ivoiriennes. Source: Rodrigue Ngonzo, EU-F4F/Particip*

Depuis 2018, la Côte d’Ivoire s’est engagée à prendre des mesures pour intégrer les femmes de manière effective dans la gestion des ressources forestières du pays.

Cette plus grande prise en compte du genre est également manifeste dans les négociations d’un APV sur l’Application des réglementations forestières, la gouvernance et les échanges commerciaux (ou FLEGT, acronyme anglais) avec l’Union européenne (UE). Cet Accord vise à améliorer la gouvernance forestière ivoirienne et à assurer que le bois et ses produits dérivés exportés vers l’UE sont légaux.

Plusieurs femmes représentant le secteur civil ivoirien, l’administration publique et l’UE ont partagé leurs points de vue sur les avancées réalisées jusqu’à présent en matière d’intégration du genre dans les négociations de l’APV, ainsi que sur les défis à surmonter pour atteindre l’égalité des sexes.

Ahoussi Delphine, présidente de MALEBI, une association de femmes rurales ivoiriennes, souligne que « si on parle de développement durable, on ne peut pas laisser les femmes en dehors des décisions qui concernent la gestion des forêts. C’est simple : si on veut y réussir, on a besoin des femmes. »

Pour Chantal Marijnissen, négociatrice en chef de l’APV pour l’UE, « les négociations de l’Accord doivent contribuer à la reconnaissance du droit des femmes à jouer un rôle dans la gouvernance forestière, et à être incluses dans le partage des bénéfices économiques obtenus des forêts ».

Lire l’article : Les femmes ivoiriennes réclament leur place dans le secteur forestier

Rodrigue Ngonzo, EU-F4F/Particip

Women voices raise in the Ivorian forest sector

13 May 2022

The VPA Africa-Latin America Facility of the European Forest Institute has released a story describing the situation of women in the Ivorian forest sector, and the reinforcement of their role in the negotiation of the EU-Côte d’Ivoire FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA). The Agreement is reshaping the way forests are managed in Côte d’Ivoire.

*Dialogue with Ivorian women. Source: Rodrigue Ngonzo, EU-F4F/Particip*

Since 2018, Côte d’Ivoire has committed to taking measures to effectively integrate women into the management of the country’s forest resources.

This greater consideration of gender is also reflected in the negotiations of a FLEGT VPA with the European Union. The Agreement aims to improve Ivorian forest governance and ensure that timber and timber products exported to the EU are legal.

Several women representing the Ivorian civil sector and the public administration, as well as the European Union, have shared their views about the gender developments achieved in the negotiation of the VPA, and the challenges yet to overcome to achieve gender equality.

Ahoussi Delphine, president of MALEBI, an association of Ivorian rural women, highlighted that “if we talk about sustainable development, we cannot leave women out of decisions that affect forest management. It’s simple: if we want to succeed, we need women to be on board”.

For Chantal Marijnissen, chief VPA negotiator for the European Commission, “the negotiations of the Agreement must contribute to the recognition of women’s right to play a role in forest governance, and to be included in the sharing of economic benefits derived from forests”.

Read the story: Ivorian women claim their place in the forest sector

More information:

EU-Côte d’Ivoire FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA)

Guyana and the EU agree on roadmap to improve forest governance and reduce illegal timber trade

22 March 2022

On 10 March 2022, representatives of Guyana and the European Union agreed on a detailed roadmap implementing the Guyana-EU FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), which aims to improve forest governance and verify the trade in legal timber.

*Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, and Ambassador of the European Union to Guyana, Fernando Ponz Cantó sign the agreement.*

“Through the implementation of the VPA, Guyana is further reducing illegal timber trade, modernising timber operations and ensuring forestry brings employment in the formal economy,” said Honorable Vickram Bharrat, MP Minister of Natural Resources. “During our earlier negotiations, Guyana has already addressed key objectives such as the revision of the National Forest Policy and the alignment of the VPA to Guyana’s Constitution as well as international legal texts, such as the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.”

EU Ambassador to Guyana, H.E. Fernando Ponz Canto, further stated that “timber and timber products covered by valid FLEGT licences automatically meet the requirements of the EU Timber Regulation. Once Guyana’s Timber Legality Assurance System is fully operational, the EU will allow imports of FLEGT-licensed timber from Guyana to enter the EU market without due diligence checks under the EU Timber Regulation”. The Roadmap agreed will provide significant benefits for Guyana, the Ambassador added: “this is a major step towards more inclusive and sustainable use of Guyana’s formidable forest resources, and a further increase in EU-Guyana trade”.

These achievements show that Guyana is strengthening forest governance through the VPA and other related initiatives and is advancing toward FLEGT licensing. Good governance of Guyana’s forests is crucial to sustainable development. Moreover, it helps both Guyana and the EU contribute to achieving the world’s Sustainable Development Goals, mitigating climate change and protecting biodiversity.

During the meeting, the Parties also discussed the establishment of the Guyana-EU VPA Joint Monitoring and Review Committee (JMRC), which will oversee the implementation of the Agreement and includes representatives of all stakeholder groups.

The Parties considered the next steps in the VPA signature and ratification process, which is anticipated to be completed before the end of the year. Representatives of private sector and civil society, including Indigenous Peoples’ Organisations, presented the issues they would like further discussion on. The Parties re-iterated that all forest stakeholders will be involved in the VPA implementation process. Guyana committed to make funds available to support the implementation of the VPA. The EU has already been providing highly significant financial support and is planning to continue to do so in line with the Joint implementation framework both Parties have agreed upon at the pre-JMRC. Additional support is provided by the Norway and the UK.

The next meeting of the Parties is foreseen to take place before the end of 2022.

More information

Ivorian forestry officers controlling timber harvested in a forest concession.

Marc Vandenhaute, EFI

Tests de terrain en appui aux négociations de l’APV-FLEGT entre l’UE et la Côte d’Ivoire

24 February 2022

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Les négociations de l’Accord de Partenariat Volontaire (APV) FLEGT (Application des réglementations forestières, gouvernance et échanges commerciaux) entre la Côte d’Ivoire et l’Union européenne (UE) avancent à bon rythme et se rapprochent de leur conclusion, prévue en avril 2022. Cet Accord vise à améliorer la gouvernance forestière ivoirienne et à assurer que le bois et ses produits dérivés exportés vers l’UE sont légaux. Dans ce cadre, des tests de terrain ont été réalisés afin de soumettre à examen certains éléments clés de l’APV et proposer d’éventuelles améliorations.

Pour assurer la légalité du bois et ses produits dérivés exportés vers l’UE, l’APV inclut une définition de la légalité. Cette définition identifie les exigences réglementaires en matière économique, environnementale et sociale à respecter par les opérateurs et autorités intervenants dans la filière forêt-bois.

Avant la conclusion des négociations, les parties prenantes doivent soumettre à examen la définition de la légalité. Pour cela, durant le mois de février, une équipe composée de représentants des différentes parties prenantes dans les négociations et d’un consultant international a réalisé une série de tests de terrain.

L’équipe a visité plusieurs unités de transformation du bois pour vérifier que les conditions légales liées aux droits des travailleurs étaient effectivement appliquées aux différentes étapes de la chaine d’approvisionnement.

L’équipe a aussi eu l’occasion d’échanger avec les administrations forestières et les communautés locales. Un des points clés a été d’évaluer dans quelle mesure les dispositions légales récemment adoptées pour l’application du Code Forestier ivoirien sont déjà reflétées dans les pratiques sur le terrain, ainsi que les éventuelles difficultés rencontrées.

Le rapport des tests, qui est attendu pour la fin du mois de février, identifiera les lacunes et les possibilités d’amélioration. Il inclura également des recommandations qui permettront aux parties prenantes de négocier un Accord plus réaliste, applicable et adapté à la réalité ivoirienne.

Marc Vandenhaute, EFI

Field tests in support to the EU-Côte d’Ivoire VPA-FLEGT negotiations

24 February 2022

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Negotiations of a FLEGT (Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) between Côte d’Ivoire and the European Union (EU) are advancing at a good pace and scheduled to conclude in April 2022. This Agreement aims to improve Ivorian forest governance and ensure that timber and timber products exported to the EU are legal. In this context, field tests have been carried out to assess certain key VPA elements and to suggest improvements.

To ensure the legality of timber and timber products exported to the EU, the VPA defines this legality. The legality definition identifies the economic, environmental and social regulatory requirements to be respected by operators and authorities involved in the timber sector.

Before negotiations conclude, stakeholders are assessing the suitability of the legality definition on the ground. In February, a team consisting of representatives of the various stakeholders involved in the negotiations and an international consultant conducted a series of field tests.

The team visited several wood processing units to check that the legal conditions related to workers’ rights were applicable at all stages of the supply chain.

The team also discussed with forestry administrations and local communities to what extent the legal requirements recently adopted to implement the Ivorian Forest Code are being applied on the ground, and whether any difficulties were encountered.

The test report, expected by the end of February, will identify areas for improvement. It will also include recommendations, enabling stakeholders to negotiate an Agreement that is more realistic, applicable and adapted to the Ivorian reality.

Indigenous lenca woman. Monte Panina, Intibucá, Honduras.

Indigenous voices central in Honduras timber agreement

9 August 2021

In the lead up to the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, the European Forest Institute (EFI) has released a story describing the experience of indigenous peoples in the negotiation of the EU-Honduras Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA). The agreement is reshaping the way forests are managed in Honduras.

Honduras and the European Union committed in 2013 to working together and addressing illegal logging and trade. The VPA was negotiated to improve overall governance in the forest sector, and to ensure wood sold domestically and exported from Honduras comes from legal sources. The agreement has now been ratified by the Honduran congress and by the EU.

From the outset, VPA negotiations in Honduras included representatives from indigenous communities along with the Government, private sector, and civil society organisations.

Rosario García, president of the National Lenca Indigenous Organisation (ONIL) and coordinator of the Roundtable for the Unity of Lenca Indigenous People (MUPIL), describes the VPA as an opportunity to deal with historic, entrenched problems indigenous peoples have struggled with.

Carmen Borjas, who represents small and medium forest owners, says the VPA has been ratified with an unparalleled level of consensus, with forest owners now paying full attention to what indigenous groups have to say.

Read the story:

Turning over a leaf: indigenous voices central in Hon d uras timber agreement

Las voces indígenas, protagonistas de un acuerdo sobre la madera en Honduras

9 August 2021

En las jornadas previas al Día Internacional de los Pueblos Indígenas del Mundo, el Instituto Forestal Europeo (EFI) ha publicado una historia que describe la experiencia de los pueblos indígenas en la negociación del Acuerdo Voluntario de Asociación (AVA) entre la UE y Honduras. El acuerdo reconfigura la manera en que se gestionan los bosques en Honduras.

En 2013, Honduras y la Unión Europea se comprometieron a trabajar juntos y abordar el problema de la tala y el comercio ilegales de madera. Las negociaciones del AVA buscaban mejorar la gobernanza del sector forestal y garantizar que la madera vendida en el mercado hondureño o exportada a la UE u otros destinos tenga un origen legal. El AVA ya ha sido ratificado por el congreso de Honduras y la UE.

Desde su inicio, las negociaciones incluyeron a representantes de las comunidades indígenas, del Gobierno, del sector privado y de distintas organizaciones de la sociedad civil.

Rosario García, presidenta de la Organización Nacional Indígena Lenca (ONIL) y coordinadora de la Mesa de Unidad del Pueblo Indígena Lenca (MUPIL), sostiene que el AVA representa una gran oportunidad para afrontar los problemas estructurales con los que históricamente han tenido que lidiar los pueblos indígenas.

Carmen Borjas, representante de los pequeños y medianos dueños de bosques, sostiene que el AVA se ratificó con un nivel de consenso sin precedentes, en un proceso en el que los propietarios forestales prestaron gran atención a lo que los grupos indígenas tienen que decir.

Lea la historia:

Pueblos indígenas, protagonistas de un acuerdo sobre la madera en Honduras

EU and Honduras ratify agreement on illegal logging and trade in legal timber

30 June 2021

The EU and Honduras have ratified a Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade, to address illegal logging and promote trade in legal timber products.

Implementation of the VPA will take several years, during which Honduras will develop a timber legality assurance system to ensure that its timber and timber products come from legal sources and comply with relevant laws relating to importation, exportation, harvesting, processing and trade.

Implementation of the VPA will entail introducing systems and procedures to assure that businesses in Honduras only use domestic timber or import timber that has been harvested and traded in accordance with relevant legislation in the country of harvest. This will prevent illegally-harvested timber, and businesses trading it, from taking part in supply chains regulated by the timber legality assurance system.

An EU-Honduras Joint Implementation Committee (JIC) will oversee how the provisions of the Agreement are put into practice.

Once the VPA has been fully implemented, and a joint assessment by the EU and Honduras confirms this, the parties will set a date from which Honduras will issue FLEGT licences to its EU-bound exports of verified legal timber products.

FLEGT-licensed products will automatically meet the requirements of the EU Timber Regulation, which prohibits the placing of illegal timber on the EU market.

Until FLEGT licensing starts, imports into the EU from Honduras will continue to be subject to the due diligence requirements of the EU Timber Regulation aimed at ensuring that the risk of placing illegal products on the Union market is negligible.

The 13th Joint Implementation Committee was held on 2-3 June 2021 in Brazzaville

The Republic of the Congo and the EU release 2020 annual report on VPA progress

11 June 2021

The Republic of the Congo and the EU have released a joint report on progress in implementing the Voluntary Partnership Agreement from January to December 2020.

The report describes progress made with the timber legality assurance system, institutional improvements, stakeholder engagement, communication, transparency and monitoring of the agreement.

The report is available in French: Rapport annuel conjoint 2020 sur la mise en œuvre de l’APV FLEGT en République du Congo

More information:

Follow the VPA process in Congo
Congo-EU VPA text and annexes
More on Voluntary Partnership Agreements

La Unión Europea y Honduras acuerdan combatir la tala ilegal y promover el comercio de madera legal

1 March 2021

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Honduras y la Unión Europea (UE) firman un acuerdo sobre la aplicación de leyes, gobernanza y comercio forestales. El acuerdo garantizará que toda la madera y productos derivados hondureños importados a la UE tengan un origen legal y dispongan de autorización.

*La comisaria europea de Asociaciones Internacionales, Jutta Urpilainen (izquierda), y el embajador de Honduras, Roberto Ochoa Madrid (derecha) firmando el AVA.*

El acuerdo voluntario de asociación (AVA) fue firmado el 23 de febrero por el embajador de Portugal, Nuno Brito, la comisaria europea de Asociaciones Internacionales, Jutta Urpilainen, y el embajador de Honduras, Roberto Ochoa Madrid. Entrará en vigor cuando ambas partes lo hayan ratificado de acuerdo con sus procedimientos internos.

Honduras es el primer país latinoamericano en firmar un acuerdo voluntario de asociación con la UE en el marco del Plan de Acción para la Aplicación de Leyes, Gobernanza y Comercio Forestales (FLEGT, por sus siglas en inglés).

Según establece el acuerdo, Honduras pondrá en marcha mecanismos sólidos para garantizar que la madera producida en el país se obtenga legalmente. De este modo, se creará un sistema de seguimiento de la legalidad que permita evaluar la producción de madera en Honduras con criterios similares a los establecidos en el Reglamento de la madera de la UE.

Este proceso favorece las metas comerciales y de desarrollo sostenible de la UE y contribuirá al objetivo más amplio de reducir la tala ilegal.