As of 15 November 2016, timber shipments exported from Indonesia to European Union (EU) member States can be accompanied by a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) license to certify that the timber has been harvested, transported, processed and traded according to Indonesian law.
15 September 2016: As of 15 November 2016, timber shipments exported from Indonesia to European Union (EU) member States can be accompanied by a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) license to certify that the timber has been harvested, transported, processed and traded according to Indonesian law.
The licensing scheme is part of the EU-FLEGT Action Plan, adopted in 2003 to promote concrete measures to stem the illegal timber trade and contribute to sustainable forest management. Since 2013, the EU Timber Regulation has prohibited European companies from placing illegal timber and timber products on the EU market. FLEGT-licensed timber automatically complies with the requirements of the regulation. Indonesia, which supplies one third of tropical timber imports by value to the EU, is the first country globally to start issuing FLEGT licenses. Five other countries, including Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Ghana, Liberia and the Republic of Congo, have signed Voluntary Partnership Agreements with the EU and are working towards FLEGT licensing. [FAO Press Release] [IISD RS Story on the Licensing Scheme, May 2016] [Guest Article #60 by Robert Simpson: Why Legal Timber Matters]