ITTO International Workshop on Phased Approaches to Certification

As part of ITTO's ongoing work on the development and promotion of phased approaches to certification as a means to addressing the current problem of tropical developing countries lagging behind in the field of forest and timber certification, the ITTO International Workshop on Phased Approaches to Certification was convened pursuant to ITTC Decision 10(XXXIV) as contained in Annex A. Paragraph 3 of the decision provides for the convening of the workshop with the following objectives:

1. to solicit views, facilitate consultations and promote a better understanding of phased approaches to certification among buyers, government agencies with timber procurement policies, certification schemes and other stakeholders;
2. to raise awareness among governments, markets, donor agencies, NGOs, multilateral development banks and international organizations on the merits and benefits of phased approaches to certification and possibilities to encourage their implementation; and
3. to facilitate understanding of procurement policies of buyers and public agencies as related to certification and the implications of such policies for tropical timber producers.

Among the germane issues relating to phased approaches to certification that were addressed at the ITTO Workshop are:

1. market requirements of certification and their implications for tropical timber producers;
2. public procurement policies on tropical timber and implications for tropical timber producers;
3. market requirements for certification and phased approaches;
4. implementation of phased approaches within existing certification schemes;
5. implications of legal origin and compliance as baseline requirements;
6. status of regional initiatives; and
7. the way forward: support needs and cooperation.

The workshop was organized in cooperation with the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (seco) and Intercooperation. The outcomes and recommendations of the Workshop were presented at the Thirty-eighth Session of the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC), held on 19-21 June 2005 in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo.

All workshop documents are now available for downloading (see below)