The Guyana Forestry Commission is currently overseeing a complaints mechanism established for forest operators to ensure better compliance and governance in the sector.
The mechanism was created as a result of a Food and Agriculture Organization and European Union-funded Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) project to prepare forest sector operators for the implementation of the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) Process, which recently concluded.
The project, which was initiated by the Forest Products Association (FPA) in December 2019, was aimed at engaging forest sector operators in the process of developing a complaints mechanism and proposing suitable recommendations for challenges identified; influencing the reduction in barriers affecting legal compliance on the domestic market identified during a survey; and increasing the awareness of operators’ requirement for VPA readiness through the creation of infomercials.
Speaking at the closing ceremony for the project last Friday, Mona Bynoe, the project coordinator, explained that the project was initially to be conducted through face-to-face interactions with the operators but after the COVID-19 pandemic started, like many other activities, the project had to adapt to a method that would allow for interactions while maintaining safety. The project’s timeline was also extended from 12 months to 18 months due to the pandemic, she said.
Addressing the survey that informed the project, Bynoe noted that 66 companies from all ten regions in Guyana responded and were able to participate. She said the survey found that the majority of complaints and penalties faced by the operators are in areas related to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). According to the responses by the operators, the penalties they face are due to a lack of knowledge as it relates to the offences. In addition, some said a lack of documentation, as workers may not have necessary paperwork like birth certificates, has caused them to face a penalty. Other complaints raised during the survey included the time it takes for regulatory agencies to process paperwork and get back to the operators as well as concessions.
Among the recommendations made to address the complaints raised in the survey was to have all complaints by forestry operators sent to the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), whether they were internal complaints or external (regarding another agency, such as NIS, EPA, etc.,). A project officer noted that the GFC has since developed a system to ensure that all complaints are documented and operators will be notified immediately of progress with their complaints.
Additionally, there is a timeline for the complaints to be circulated. A two-day period was decided on for internal complaints to be reported to the department while it should take no more than five days for the external complaints to reach the agency it is intended for.
James Singh, the GFC consultant, who represented the Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat at the closing ceremony of the project, called the project a noble effort.
The VPA is an action plan which has been adopted since 2003 by EU member states in response to the global environmental economic and social consequences of illegal timber trade. The action plan outlines a series of measures to improve the forest industry by strengthening governance of the trade and ensuring sustainable forest management, Singh noted.
For this reason, he said the Government of Guyana appreciates the FAO’s and the EU’s support to the forestry sector in Guyana. Singh said, “The government is dedicated to work along” to advance the industry and is looking forward to other like-minded partners to work with as they continue implementing ways to advance the renewable resource. In addition, Singh said that the VPA will be able to conclude the initial phase of the agreement to create more incentive opportunities after the government takes it to the National Assembly.
