The Forestry Department of the Food and Agricultural Organization held a technical working group meeting in May 2019 in Rome, Italy, to develop legal elements that would guide forest management, timber production and trade. The meeting brought together lawyers, forestry officials and forestry-related organizations, including the International Tropical Timber Organization and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
The UN Environment Programme provided technical advice on a set of guiding legal elements for forest management, timber production and trade. The legal elements were developed by the Food and Agricultural Organization to serve as voluntary guidance to timber-producing countries, to strengthen national legal frameworks. The frameworks are intended to help actors along the timber value chain to understand their obligations in relation to timber harvesting and trade.
Through the workshop, participants enhanced their understanding and capacity to develop and enforce national legal frameworks that reflect the international best practices for assuring legality in forest management, and the production and trade of timber. Once the guiding legal elements are finalized, they will be used as a basis for posting national information on forests, trade and the legality of timber in a database called TIMBERLEX, which will be managed by the Food and Agricultural Organization under the framework of FAOLEX, a comprehensive and up-to-date legislative and policy database.
UN Environment will continue to work with the Food and Agricultural Organization and other related organizations to increase the understanding of the elements of the legality of timber, including implementation of sound forest management.
For more information, please contact: Sylvia.Bankobeza[at]un.org I Niamh.Brannigan[at]un.org I Catherine.Abuto[at]un.org
