12 June 2015: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), the Government of Japan, and the ‘Committee for Wood Utilization Caravan to Bridge Forest and City of Japan,’ convened a workshop on illegal trade in tropical timber in order to address challenges, identify opportunities, and review existing approaches and frameworks.

The workshop, attended by over 300 participants, facilitated discussions on: requirements and assurance measures put in place by importing countries, steps to reduce illegal logging in tropical timber producing countries, options to enhance legality assurance, and ways to promote the trade of legally-harvested and processed timber products.

Good practices highlighted in the workshop include: an ITTO project for DNA tracking of timber; ITTO’s information platform for policy and market developments in tropical timber trade; and the establishment of timber legality assurance measures in countries such as Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Indonesia and Liberia.

The workshop built on an ongoing Asia Forest Partnership between the Governments of Indonesia and Japan, as well as international processes such as the G8 Programme on Forests. [Website: International Symposium to Combat Illegal Logging and Associated Trade] [ITTO Press Release]