Beginning June 15, this year, all timber products that will be exported from Ghana to the European Union (EU) market must conform to the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licence requirement.

Although the move would make Ghana the first African country and the second in the world to meet the requirement, the opportunity risks fizzling out due to Parliament’s failure to ratify the timber rights before rising last month.

If the country fails to ratify the timber rights, all timber products leaving the country cannot enter the EU, the country’s largest market for wood and wood products.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Forestry Commission, Dr Hugh Brown, told the Daily Graphic that apart from being on the brink of making history, that milestone would help to eliminate illegal logging and ensure the sustainable management of the country’s forest resources.

He, however, said that for Ghana to achieve that goal, Parliament needed to ratify some timber rights as a matter of urgency.

“Every timber right is a contract that is signed between the Forestry Commission and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, and ratified by Parliament. Parliament has that last step to take for us,” he said.

He said some of the timber rights had been ratified while others still needed to complete the ratification process, “and we are waiting for that due process to be completed.”

“If we meet this deadline, it would mean a lot to Ghana because we are announcing our credential as a country that respects the laws of the environment; we will be sending a signal to the international community that we are harvesting and trading timber from our forest under strict regulations; and it is a signal to whoever wants to invest in the country’s forest that Ghana plays by the books,” he said.

Again, he said meeting the June 15 deadline would send a signal to the EU market that Ghana was the first country in Africa to fulfill the FLEGT licence requirement, “and this is good reputation for us.”

Context

Also known as the timber legality licence, FLEGT licence is a document issued by timber-producing countries that have ratified a voluntary partnership agreement (VPA) with the EU.

The FLEGT confirms that shipment of timber or timber products has been legally produced in accordance with the relevant laws of the country of harvest. It also ensures that timber exported to the EU by partner countries is harvested legally, thereby promoting sustainable forest management.

While the FLEGT licence eliminates the risk of trading in illegal timber products for EU traders, its added advantage is that traders in FLEGT-licenced timber products do not need to undertake further due diligence, which can be time-consuming and costly.

For partner countries, the advantage is that FLEGT-licenced timber products are considered under the EU Timber Regulation, making it easy to access EU markets. It also ensures that partner countries adopt environmentally sound practices to source and harvest timber in a sustainable manner.

On November 6, 2024, Ghana signed an agreement with the EU, setting June 30, this year, for the commencement of FLEGT licence

The deal was unveiled at the 12th session of the Ghana-EU Joint Monitoring Review Mechanism of the VPA in Accra, marking a significant milestone in the sustainable management of the country’s timber resources.

President’s assurance

In his address to launch the Tree for Life initiative on Friday, March 21, this year, President John Dramani Mahama gave a firm assurance that the government was committed to ensuring that all was set for the country to begin exporting FLEGT-licenced timber by June 2025.

The President said the FLEGT initiative was crucial as it would ensure that only sustainably sourced timber was exported to the EU, helping to combat illegal logging and promoting sustainable forest management.

“This achievement underscores our commitment to the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals – a commitment by countries to limit average global temperatures to below two degree Celsius. “As we approach the 2030 deadline, we must accelerate our efforts to meet climate and biodiversity targets,” he added.

Preparedness

Dr Brown said the assurance by the President was refreshing because over the years, the Forestry Commission had put in place all the technical systems for the effective rollout of the FLEGT licence.

“We have the law in place; the institutions are in place and the division that will issue the FLEGT licence has been sensitised and oriented to be able to do so.

There is a new department in the Forestry Commission that has the sole purpose of making sure that there is critical auditing of material going to the EU market. 

A VPA governance consultant to the Forestry Commission, Chris Beeko, said it was nostalgic that almost 16 years after Ghana ratified the agreement, the country was just a step away from fulfilling the FLEGT licence requirements.

He said it was important for the last hurdle to be cleared by Parliament by ratifying the timber rights.  

“Once a country says it is ready to trade in timber under FLEGT licence on the agreed date, the EU, which is the other partner, will inform its constituents and their authorities.

They will log that date in their system to indicate that from that date, all timber coming into their jurisdiction will be scrutinised and accepted under FLEGT licence. If that date comes, every consignment going to the EU must have a FLEGT licence,” he said.

He added that it was important for Ghana to complete the ratification of timber rights as a matter of urgency because if any consignment of timber entered the EU market after the deadline without a FLEGT licence, a different method would be used to interrogate it.

“This will put that consignment in a tight situation because it might be more difficult for entry into the system,” he said.