30 October 2015: The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) has published the baseline report of the Independent Market Monitoring initiative, established to support the implementation of bilateral voluntary partnership agreements (VPAs) between the EU and timber-supplying countries.

Authored by Rupert Oliver and published as ITTO Technical Servies no. 45, the report ‘Europe’s Changing Tropical Timber Trade: Baseline Report of the Independent Market Monitoring initiative’ determines the state of EU markets for wood products prior to the issuance of import licenses under the EU Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) programme. The report covers all products within the scope of existing or potential future VPAs, including primary wood products, wooden doors, floors and furniture, and pulp and paper. It focuses on the trade between the 28 EU member States and 17 tropical timber-supplying countries at various stages of the VPA process. It thus quantifies VPA countries’ shares in relevant sections of the EU timber market; and identifies and weights the wide range of factors impacting on the availability of tropical timber from VPA countries and the demand for these products in the EU. It also puts trade flows between the EU and VPA partner countries in their global context, establishing the position of the FLEGT licensing process within the wider context of social, economic and environmental developments influencing the international tropical timber trade.

The FLEGT Independent Market Monitoring initiative is a multi-year project supervised by ITTO and financed by the EU to support implementation of bilateral VPAs between the EU and timber-supplying countries. [ITTO News Release] [Publication: ITTO Technical Series No. 45: Europe’s Changing Tropical Timber Trade: Baseline Report of the Independent Market Monitoring Initiative] [FLEGT Independent Market Monitoring webpage]