Traceability system improves forest governance in Panama

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11 March 2019, Darien, Panama

Eng. Maria Monica Moscoso, Regional Director of the Ministry of Environment, Darien Province, uses a smartphone to scan a barcode attached to a tree in Darien, Panama. Photo: R. Carrillo/ITTO

A new video shows the timber traceability system recently put in place in Darien, Panama, thanks to a project financed by ITTO and executed by WWF-Panama in collaboration with the Panama Ministry of Environment. The system, which tracks timber from the forest to the consumer, has already reduced forest illegality, with benefits for forests, managers, companies and the Ministry.
 
The traceability system enables the tracking of trees using electronic devices—chips—from the moment they are identified to the point at which the timber reaches consumers. In its phase, the system is collecting information on around 700 crop trees per day, and the Ministry of Environment is planning to expand its use to other regions of the country.
 
The system is an output of ITTO project TFL-PD 044/13 Rev.2 (M): “Strengthening the management capacity of ANAM to reduce illegal timber logging and trade in the East region of Panama (Bayano and Darien) through monitoring and control mechanisms”.

Watch the video.
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