Illustrative image (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Accountability and legal assurance in timberimport control was the main focus of a workshop that began in Hanoi on August29 as part of the building of a decree on the Vietnam Timber Legal AssuranceSystem (VNTLAS).
The two-day workshop was co-organised by the German Agency forInternational Cooperation (GIZ) and the Vietnam Administration of Forestry(VNFOREST), in the framework of a project supporting the implementation of theVoluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest LawEnforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA FLEGT) in Vietnam, Laos and Cameroon.
VNFOREST Director General Nguyen Quoc Tri said the workshop provided aplatform for State agencies, foreign experts, the wood industry, researchinstitutes and social organisations to share experience and lessons inpreparation for the building and implementation of the VNTLAS in line withVietnam’s commitments in the Vietnam-EU VPA FLEGT, which was signed in 2018 andtook effect on June 1 this year.
The decree on VNTLAS, scheduled to be issued at the end of this year,will guide the implementation of a number of articles of the VPA FLEGT and the2017 Forestry Law.
Representatives from relevant agencies in Europe and the US will share experiencein enforcing regulations on legal timber and import control, servingdiscussions on specific issues and solutions to improve the accountability and legalassurance in reality.
According to statistics of the General Department of Vietnam Customs,the customs sector uncovered 48 cases of violations of rules on timberimport-export, seizing nearly 90 tonnes of precious timber since the beginning of 2018 to now. The sector hasimposed administrative fines in 30 cases, started criminal proceedings in onecase and transferred five cases to other competent agencies, and isinvestigating 12 cases.
The customs sector is also participating in the building of the decree. -VNA
VNA
