See more coverage of this event on the main IISD ENB website

We have launched a new website to better share our reports of global environmental negotiations.

As well as current coverage of new negotiations, you can find our original reports from this event by clicking here.


39th Session of the International Tropical Timber Council 
and Associated Sessions of the Committees

 



  ITTC-39  
Daily Web
coverage 
Mon 7 Tue 8 Wed 9
  Thu 10 Fri 11 Sat 12
       
 SUMMARY English   French Spanish
 
HTM PDF
TXT
HTM PDF
TXT
HTM PDF
TXT
 
     

Click on the above days to view previous
ENB Web coverage
.

 


Highlights for Wednesday, 9 November 2005

Delegates to the ITTC-39 continued discussing project, programme and financial work of the Organization. In the morning, the Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management met to review items in the draft biennial work programme for 2006-2007 and projects and pre-projects in progress. The Committees on Economic Information and Market Intelligence and Forest Industry considered policy work and the draft biennial work programme. The Committee on Finance and Administration considered revised documents on the draft biennial Administrative Budget for 2006-2007, the status of the administrative account for 2005, and countries ineligible for project and pre-project submission due to arrearages. In the afternoon, delegates met in a Council Session to discuss CITES listing proposals by members, the annual review and assessment of the international timber situation and the contents of two draft Council decisions. Delegates also met in an informal meeting to consider issues of finance related to the renegotiation of the ITTA, 1994. During the late afternoon, delegates also reconvened in the Committees on Reforestation and Forest Management, Economic Information and Market Intelligence and Forest Industry to complete outstanding agenda items.

Above photo: Markku Simula (ITTO Consultant) (center) in consultation with delegates from the Producer and Consumer groups.

Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management (CRF):

The Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management discussed items in the biennial work programme for 2006-2007, including resource allocations for an FAO Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission short course on forest policy, regional level implementation of sustainable forest management (SFM) through ITTO supported projects and effective enforcement of forest laws and regulations that ensure SFM and secure the production base. Delegates also reviewed projects and pre-projects in progress.

Left photo L-R:
CRF Chair Jennifer Conje (US), CRF Vice-Chair Petrus Gunarso (Indonesia) and John Leigh (ITTO)



The US reported on projects selected for ex-post evaluation, noting the selected projects achieve, inter alia, a balance between regions and topics and cover projects that are nearing sunset. He indicated that the Committee selected projects under two major themes, training and community participation.

Above photo: Guy Robertson (US)

Patricia Tobón (Colombia), presented on a project designed to explore alternative financing for forest management, including under the Clean Development Mechanism.

P.C. Kotwal (India), reported that a project designed to achieve SFM and increase forest cover in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh had been successfully completed on time and under budget.



India cautioned that a proposed workshop on obtaining carbon credits under the CDM from natural forest may be premature.






Above photo: Bipin Behari (India)

Norway, along with the the Netherlands, the Philippines, the US, Germany, and India volunteered to take part in a  working group that will review the terms of reference for reviewing the ITTO/IUCN guidelines on biodiversity.




Above photo: Jan Abrahamsen (Norway)

The Netherlands suggested that the composition of the workshop on reviewing the ITTO/IUCN guidelines on biodiversity should include the private sector.





Above photo: Flip Van Helden (The Netherlands)


Committees on Economic Information and Market Intelligence and the Committee on Forest Industry (CEM/CFI): 



Above photo L-R: View of the presentation on downstreaming; The CEM/CFI, chaired by Celestine Ntsame-Okwo (CFI, Gabon) and James Gasana (CEM, Switzerland) met on Wednesday to discussed policy work on downstream processing and market studies, and reviewed terms of reference for studies on certification.



Lachlan Hunter, ITTO Consultant, presented a report on downstream processing in which furniture production is a major opportunity for tropical timber producers, but resource insecurity is a problem hindering its development.

Ole Pedersen and Pierre Desclos, ITTO Consultants made a presentation on review of timber market in France in which competitiveness issues are contentious, particularly certification of tropical timber.

Above photos L-R: Ole Pedersen, ITTO Consultant; Pierre Desclos with Ole Pedersen.



Papua New Guinea said that the pre-project on enhancing downstream processing reflects the actual Papua New Guinea situation, where processing is on a minor scale and forestry resource depletion is a major problem.



Above photo: Magdalene Maihua (Papua New Guinea) 

In the terms of reference for a study on certification, New Zealand observed that there is now a reference to “illegal logging” in the preamble, and this text should be added to an operative paragraph.




Above photo: Charlotte Cudby (New Zealand)

Malaysia stressed the importance of outputs of the pre-project on enhancing downstream processing on the timber industry in Malaysia , including: value addition, employment, income multipliers, and technical linkages with other sectors.


Above photo: Norini Haron (Malaysia)

The US introduced the text of a terms of reference for a policy work on certification, agreed by a working group.






Above photo: Brian Woodward (US)


Council Session: 


On Wednesday, the Council considered agenda items on CITES listing proposals by members, and decisions and report of the session.

The EU has identified CITES listings of tropical timber as an area where ITTO has a comparative advantage, with its SFM programs, and suggested that many donors will be interested in the proposal.

Papua New Guinea said that the process of CITES listing of tropical timber species is critical for range states, who need to see the trade implications and need to build capacity for following CITES requirements.

Indonesia announced that it is consulting with other range states to identify new species for CITES listing.


Above photos L-R: ITTC Chair Alhassan Attah (Ghana); Patrick Hardcastle (UK); Dike Kari and Henry Yanda (Papua New Guinea); and Bambang Tri Hartono and Taufiq Alim (Indonesia)

Informal Joint Producer/Consumer meeting on the Renegotiation of ITTA,1994


Carlos Antonio da Rocha Paranhos, President of the UN Conference, noted that delegates have been discussing issues of scope and finance for two years and there should be no reason why an agreement cannot be finalized at ITTA-4.

Above photos L-R: Carlos Antonio da Rocha Paranhos (Brazil), Jürgen Blaser (Switzerland), ITTC Chair Alhassan Attah (Ghana), and Lisanne Losier, UNCTAD


On key policy work, Jürgen Blaser, Chair of the ITTA, 1994 renegotiations, indicated that the progress made during ITTC-39 informal consultations will help find compromise at the Fourth Part of the ITTA, 1994 renegotiations (ITTA-4). He noted that delegates agreed not to have a separate Work Programme Account as part of the ITTO Financial Accounts but that key policy work would be funded through the assessed Administrative Account.

Above photo:  Jürgen Blaser (Switzerland)

Brazil, on behalf of the Producer Group, noted that Article 19 on the Administrative Account is the crucial part of ITTA, 1994 and that issues of voluntary funding for the Special Account remain unresolved.









Above photo: Luiz Gasser (Brazil)

Finland, on behalf of the Consumer Group, said it understood producer countries’ frustrations over the lack of financing for projects and would need to find agreement on funding issues based on their governments’ approach to development financing.








Above photo: Aulikki Kauppila (Finland)

The EU said progress made during ITTC-40 could lead to a solution at ITTA-4 and reaffirmed its financial commitment to the new Agreement.











Above photo: 
Enzo Barattini (European Community)






 

This service was prepared in cooperation with the ITTO Secretariat



Links

 

ITTO Secretariat
Session documents
UNCTAD
FAO
UNFF Secretariat
UNFCCC Secretariat
CBD Secretariat
ENB coverage of ITTC-37
ENB coverage of the UN Conference for the Negotiation of a Successor Agreement to the ITTA, 1994 Part 1| Part 2 | Part 3 
YMB summary from the Europe and North Asia Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Conference: (HTML, PDF, TEXT).
ENB archives of forestry meetings

 
 

Digimarc Digital Watermarking | Get more information on how to digitally watermark images

   
*To view PDF files,
you will need the
free Adobe Reader

  Any irregularities on this page? Please mail the Digital Editor
| Linkages home | Visit IISDnet | Send e-mail to ENB |
© 200
5, IISD. All rights reserved.