Exports to EU 'will improve forest maintenance'
Play
Forests will be better maintained for the benefit of the Laotian people and government when timber is exported to the European Union (EU), a Laotian forestry official has said.
Deputy director-general of the Department of Forest Inspection Thongphanh Ratanalangsy said on Friday that Laos would benefit from the export of timber to the EU by ensuring long-term forestry management and sustainability.
The export of timber would also mean the best use of the country’s natural resources and the money earned would go directly to the government, which could use it to develop the country and wipe out poverty, he added.
Thongphanh made the comments at a meeting in Vientiane on the Voluntary Partnership Agreement to explain the details of Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade to all sectors in the export of timber to the EU. FLEGT came into effect in 2010 and involves sectors that will export wood to the EU under the Voluntary Partnership Agreement, which requires participating countries to comply with certain rules.
