Guyana-EU VPA
The Guyana-European Union (EU) Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) supports forest governance and law enforcement in the trade of timber products.
Guyana’s Forest Sector
Forests covers approximately seventy-five (75%) per cent of Guyana, with four-fifths (4/5) of this vegetation classified as State Forests. Forests are a source of support and sustenance for the people of Guyana, primarily rural and forest communities and Amerindians. They serve multiple land-use functions, provide socio-cultural services and is an integral part of Amerindian and local community culture. It is also an essential natural resource contributing to Guyana’s economy, assisting the country’s social and economic growth and development.
Management of the State Forests remains the responsibility of the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), which. advises the government on forest policy, forestry laws and regulations to ensure that the country maintains its strong legal and policy framework. This framework enables the country to practice sustainable forest management resulting in one of the lowest deforestation rates in the world.
Guyana has adopted and developed several initiatives over the years to strengthen forest governance and its forest sector such as the creation of a low carbon development strategy (LCDS) and using its forests to forge a green economy based on low levels of deforestation, reduced carbon emissions and climate resilience.
Guyana-EU FLEGT VPA
In response to the global issue of illegal logging, the EU created the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) initiative. This initiative is supported by an Action Plan that sets out a range of measures to address forest governance and law enforcement challenges in the sector.
A key element of the FLEGT Action Plan is the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), a bilateral agreement between the EU and a timber-producing (partner) country. VPAs aim to support governance reform and strengthen enforcement activities in the partner countries with commitments to improve transparency, accountability, legislative clarity and other aspects of governance.
When a country becomes a VPA Partner, it can issue FLEGT licenses to its exporters under national FLEGT Licensing Schemes based on a Legality Assurance System (LAS). This system ensures that only legally produced timber products are exported to the EU.
In 2012, a policy decision was taken by the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana (Guyana) to enter into formal negotiations with the EU on a FLEGT VPA. The terms of the VPA were negotiated through a collaborative process between Guyana and the EU, as both parties shared the goal of fostering good forest governance and addressing illegality. Negotiations began through a multi-stakeholder process aimed at fostering national ownership, stakeholder engagement, wide participation and a broad consensus to promote effective VPA implementation.
In November 2018, Guyana and the EU concluded VPA negotiations and initialled the VPA.
Guyana and the EU signed the VPA in December 2022 at COP 15 in Montreal, Canada, and the agreement was ratified by Guyana in April 2023, making the commitments legally binding.
Guyana is currently in the implementation phase of the VPA, with oversight provided by a joint Guyana-EU body known as the Joint Monitoring and Review Committee (JMRC). The JMRC monitors progress, addresses emerging concerns, and works collaboratively to strengthen and refine the VPA throughout this stage.
To begin issuing FLEGT licences at the end of the implementation phase, as required by the VPA, Guyana is building on existing national initiatives like its Wood Tracking System (WTS) to develop a robust timber legality assurance, also known as the Guyana Timber Legality System (GTLAS). The FLEGT Licensing Scheme will take effect when the GTLAS is successfully evaluated and Guyana and the EU are satisfied that it functions as described in the VPA.
Guyana also has a series of VPA Annexes, which describe the practical components for implementing the core commitments in the VPA in detail. Annexes provide information on the country laws that Guyana will use to monitor the Agreement, timber products covered under the Agreement and other requirements.
Phases of the VPA
Guyana’s Roadmap to FLEGT Licensing
Efforts to Tackle Illegal Logging and the VPA Timeline
VPA Countries
Negotiating, Initialled and Licensing
Countries Negotiating VPAs:
- Laos – Negotiations began in 2017
- Thailand – Negotiations began in 2017
- Côte d’Ivoire – Negotiations began in 2013
- Democratic Republic of Congo – Negotiations began in 2010
- Gabon – Negotiations began in 2010
- Malaysia– Negotiations began in 2010, and formal negotiations resumed in 2012
Countries Implementing VPAs:
- Guyana – Ratified in April 2023
- Honduras – Ratified in June 2021
- Vietnam – Ratified in June 2019
- Republic of the Congo – Ratified in February 2013
- Central African Republic – Ratified in July 2012
- Liberia – Ratified in May 2012
- Cameroon – Ratified in December 2011
- Ghana – Ratified in September 2008
FLEGT Licensed:
Benefits of the VPA
The VPA has many benefits to Guyana and Forest Sector Stakeholders who are a part of the process. Stakeholders will benefit from business growth by shipping their timber products to the EU and other global markets that are moving towards forest sustainability and new forest policies and laws.
Country and Government
- Addresses illegal logging to reduce the social, economic and environmental problems it creates such as deforestation.
- Strengthens forest sector governance by reinforcing and improving regulatory frameworks and encouraging and formalizing multi-actor and multi-sector structures.
- Modernizes the local forest sector through technological enhancements such as upgrading Guyana’s existing Wood Tracking System.
- Increases transparency and accountability through the regular release of information.
- Improves the country’s timber and its products.
- Builds the capacity of the Guyana Forestry Commission to manage the forest sector.
- Builds the capacity of stakeholders to meet commitments within the Agreement.
- Improves Guyana’s international reputation as a responsible forest nation that produces legal timber.
- Ensures the achievement of targets that will result in Guyana’s access to EU Markets for agreed timber products.
- Is a mechanism for multiple global initiatives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement.
The Private Sector and Civil Society
- Fuelling business growth and expansion.
- Enabling international market access and expansion.
- Establishing a multi-stakeholder decision-making process through capacity-building and participation.
- Harmonising stakeholder groups within the forest sector and other overlapping sectors.
- Improving business practices.
- Facilitating the ease of doing business.
- Providing community benefits through a Sustainable Livelihoods Approach (SLA).
- Strengthening the timber sector’s contribution to the national economy through fair market competition locally and globally for legally operated stakeholders.
- Recognising stakeholders, users and Forest Sector Operators’ (FSO) rights, including those of Indigenous Peoples and women.
- Improving the flow of communication and access to information.
Action Steps
Signing and Ratification of the Agreement
Having initialled the VPA in 2018, Guyana and the EU, following their respective procedures, signed the VPA in 2022 and ratified the agreement in 2023.
The Implementation Phase
The VPA is therefore in the Implementation Phase, which involves developing the GTLAS as described in the VPA so Guyana can begin issuing FLEGT Licences to export verified legal timber products to the EU market.
Guyana and the EU also established a joint implementation committee known as the Joint Monitoring and Review Committee (JMRC) to oversee the implementation of the VPA.
VPA implementation involves:
- Identifying and addressing possible gaps in the forest allocation process and the legal framework.
- Stakeholder capacity-building.
- Upgrading Guyana’s Wood Tracking System through the supply chain.
- Improving procedures for verifying legal compliance.
- Supporting Guyana in developing approaches that ensure the traditional rights of Amerindian peoples are not impeded.
- Establishing independent audits, a complaints mechanism, and systems and procedures for information on the forest sector to be publicly available.
Other activities may include legal reforms.
FLEGT-licenced Timber
When a joint EU-Guyana evaluation concludes that GTLAS is fully operational as described in the VPA, the JMRC can propose that Guyana begin to issue FLEGT Licences. Once a decision is made to commence FLEGT Licensing, the EU and Guyana will follow their respective internal processes, including legislative measures.
Monitoring and Evaluation
A market monitor will assess the trade in timber products between Guyana and the EU, and the impacts of FLEGT Licensing on this trade.
Complaints Mechanism
The Grievance and Redress Mechanism addresses complaints and disputes on the functioning of the GTLAS. It will be developed during the Implementation Phase.
