The European Union (EU) and the Inter American Institute for Co-operation on Agriculture (IICA) yesterday signed an agreement which will enable support here for a landmark forest governance pact.
The support will go towards the EU’s Forest Law Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) implementation.
A release yesterday from the Ministry of Natural Resources said that the VPA implementation is ongoing with the expectation for the first licence to be issued in 2026. The EU has committed to providing funds for the implementation phase that runs until 2026.
At the conclusion of the Joint Monitoring and Review Committee (JMRC) meeting in November 2023, the EU Ambassador to Guyana René van Nes announced that the EU will be providing additional funding to assist with the VPA implementation.
The funding is being provided through a Contribution Agreement signed between the EU Guyana Office and IICA. A workplan and budget was developed by IICA and the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) FLEGT Secretariat, the release said.
The main objectives of the funding is to support the following key objectives:
1. Improve compliance of the Guyana forest sector governance system with the EU FLEGT requirements including the implementation of the Guyana Timber Legality Assurance System.
2. Strengthen participation and improve compliance of stakeholders in the VPA process.
3. Enhance information exchange for FLEGT compliance between the EU and Guyana partners and ensure the long-term sustainability of the FLEGT VPA.
4. Support capacities at the GFC and in the forestry sector.
This support is in addition to other aid for the FLEGT VPA process including for the Digitization of the Timber Legality Assurance System.
