THE Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development has retained its Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC™) Certification for Forest Management for the Iwokrama Forest.

This followed a surveillance visit conducted by Soil Association Certification Limited of the United Kingdom (UK) during September 2019. The Iwokrama Forest was the first forest to have maintained this certification in Guyana and has raised the bar for forest management in Guyana.

“This has raised the bar for forest management in Guyana, and we are also pleased to announce that other forest managers have followed suit, so that there are now two other forest management certificates, and three chain-of-custody certificates in Guyana,” the centre noted.

FSC™ certification is the highest international accolade that Forest Managers can receive, and it is testament to the Centre’s application of international social, ecological, and environmental best practices in its management of the Iwokrama Forest.

The assessment team evaluated all elements of Iwokrama’s operations applicable to the standard to determine compliance against national and international benchmarks.

During the annual surveillance assessment, Iwokrama received two major corrective actions which were successfully closed today. Non-compliances are a normal part of any assessment process and based on the severity of the non-compliance with the standard, it could prevent the applicant from being certified.

In recent years, many international buyers and consumers have increased demands for proof of forest products being sourced from well-managed forests. Currently, all of the major global markets require some sort of certification for imports. To this end the European Union and the
Government of Guyana are also pursuing a Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) on Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) which will allow more access of Guyana’s wood to EU member countries. The FSC™ brand, in particular, is universally recognized globally for its independent assessment, and for its opinion on products that have been produced in a more environmentally-friendly manner.

The Centre expresses its thanks to the German Government, for providing support, through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) implemented Caribbean Aqua-Terrestrial Solutions Programme for preparing for Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certification from 2015-2016.

The Centre is also grateful to His Excellency President Granger and the Government of Guyana for their valuable and timely support to the Centre. Special thanks were extended to the certification team of the Centre and the local community partner, the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB) for its unwavering support.