BVRio and the Ghana Forestry Commission host the Responsible Timber Trade Fair
Connecting sellers and buyers of legal and certified timber products
28 February 2018, Accra – As part of its mission to promote legal and certified timber from tropical countries, BVRio, in collaboration with the Timber Industry Development Division (TIDD) of the Ghana Forestry Commission, today launched the Responsible Timber Trade Fair (www.bvriotradefairs.org) at the 27th Ghana International Trade Fair, in Accra. The event includes exhibit stands for timber companies to promote their products and a two-day Conference on the Legal Timber Trade, with an impressive selection of Ghanaian and International speakers. Conference topics include: the status, challenges and next steps of the FLEGT-VPA process in Ghana, Liberia, Cameroon and Côte d’lvoire; an overview of timber sector in each of these countries; and the requirements of buyers from China and the EU.
The second day of the Conference will host the launch of the Ghana Wood Tracking System (GWTS) Public Portal, developed by Civic Response in conjunction with the Forestry Commission. The purpose of the portal is to enhance due diligence processes and demonstrate the transparency and credibility of the Ghana Legality Assurance Scheme.
The illegal trade of tropical timber is one of the main drivers of environmental degradation, human rights abuses and corruption. To tackle illegality in the sector and support the trade of legal timber, international legislation such as the EU Timber Regulation (EU TR), the US Lacey Act, and the Australia Illegal Logging Prohibition Act have been developed. Thus, the objective of the fair is to promote and expose timber companies that embrace legality and the FLEGT-VPA process to timber traders from the EU and China. BVRio expects that the Responsible Timber Trade Fair will raise awareness about timber legality and help to generate an increase in the international demand for legally and sustainably sourced timber products from West and Central Africa.
About the Timber Industry Development Division (TIDD)
The Forestry Commission of Ghana is responsible for the regulation of utilization of forest and wildlife resources, the conservation and management of those resources and the coordination of policies related to them. The Forestry Commission aims to be a corporate body of excellence in the sustainable development management and utilization of Ghana’s forest and wildlife resources meeting both national and global standards for forest and wildlife resource conservation and development. The Timber Industry Development Division (TIDD) of the Ghana Forestry Commission aims to provide specialized services in promoting efficiency in product quality assurance and value-addition in the Timber Industry and Trade consistent with best environmental practices.
