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Government has agreed to sign on to the European Union- Forest LawOnly legally harvested timber will be allowed access to the EU, following a major agreement.Enforcement Governance and Trade Programme (EU FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA), which will see only legally harvested timber-products being exported to the EU markets.Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, Robert Persaud told media operatives yesterday, that Guyana’s intention, which was related to the EU delegation to Guyana on Thursday, has been a key area jointly agreed and identified in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), between Guyana and the Kingdom of Norway.Since the commencement of discussions with regard to the arrangements, several workshops were held with stakeholders in the local forestry sector,NFL Jerseys From China, over a three – year period.In November last, Persaud said the government received feedback from stakeholders, formally endorsing the position for Guyana to join the EU FLEGT.“Europe is demanding that countries that export too are compliant and be part of the EU FLEGT programmes,Cheap Jerseys Supply, so if we want to maintain our forest market shares in Europe this is also a necessary requirement,” he said.The EU FLEGT Regulation,Cheap Jerseys Paypal, adopted in 2008, is designed to control the entry of timber into the EU from countries that have entered into Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPA), with the EU. As such, it makes it illegal to import timber from countries unless the commodity possesses a FLEGT licence.In 2011,Cheap NFL Jerseys, Guyana exported approximately US$7M in forestry products to Europe, which has been a growing market, as the country continues to pursue sustainable forest management practices.“Our interest is to work closely with stakeholders to ensure that we build the capacity and whatever changes are necessary,Cheap Jerseys, that we undertake those. With regards to stakeholders, a lot of work would be in record-keeping, improving systems and ensuring that we have stringent management at the individual concessional level,” Minister Persaud explained.The Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) has been working closely with the Forest Producers’ Association (FPA), and its members, to ensure that each piece of timber which emanates from the country is traceable.The EU FLEGT arrangement will also serve to enrich the Guyana and Norway partnership, and demonstrate the country’s commitment to forest management at a sustainable level.Illegal logging currently has a devastating impact on some of the world’s most valuable assets, its forests,China NFL Jerseys, as it can pose serious environmental, economic and social consequences for a country. Over the last decade, Guyana has been able to maintain a deforestation rate of below 0.02 percent. |
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