– Guyana Forestry Commission

THE Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) is seeking to equate imported timber products with the standards demanded for local products, through a European Union Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade Action Plan (EU FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA).

The project to oversee this task is being executed to the tune of US$79,000.

Speaking at the launch of the project at the GFC’s headquarters, Kingston, Georgetown, the agency’s Head of Planning and Development, Pradeepa Bholanath said there is a small degree of imports that enter Guyana and steps are being taken to hold these imports to the same standards as local products.

“The main idea behind the guidelines is to have information on the origin of the produce, ie, Where it’s coming from? What were the standards and methods used in harvesting the produce? Did it come from a legal source [and] what were the means of conveyance of produce to the point of export? These aspects are embodied in the forestry term ‘chain of custody’.”

“So the main area we are looking into is to have more knowledge on that chain of custody, because for the timber coming from Guyana, we have all of that information already. With this, we are able to say that it [the imported timber] fulfills the same requirement that is expected of our local timber,” Bholanath said.

Though this process is being streamlined now, there are pre-existing systems in place at the National Plant Protection Organisation, the GFC and at the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). All imports must follow procedures and requirements and specific attention will be placed on the chain of custody.

“It really is to allow for there to be an eye on forest legality now and the chain of custody, rather than just documentary assessment that [says] you have filled up the necessary documents and paid the relevant taxes,” she said.

She added: “It’s not so much questioning the legality…. It’s asking for there to be additional assessment to give information on where it came from, what was the process used in harvesting that produce and what was the methods used to getting it to the point of export.”

Bholanauth said this is a proactive approach as a higher level of detail is required that will allow the GFC to seamlessly integrate it into its chain of custody.