FLEGT VPA Update May 2012

Every six months, FERN produces an update looking at the present situation with regards the EU's Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan, with a specific focus on VPAs. This May 2012 example looks at the six VPAs (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ghana, Indonesia, Liberia and the Republic of Congo) that have been finalised; and two (Ghana and Cameroon) that have been ratified. Ratification of the VPAs of Liberia and the Central African Republic is expected soon.

Official VPA negotiations are ongoing in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Gabon, Malaysia and Vietnam. However negotiations have been temporarily suspended in DRC. Three other countries are expected to start official negotiations; Ivory Coast, Honduras and Laos. Countries that have expressed an interest include Thailand, Guyana, Bolivia, Madagascar, Sierra Leone and Ecuador.