Private sector steps up for forests: Dispatches from ITTO’s Trade and Markets Day in Lomé

Lomé, 30 May 2025: As global demand for sustainable forest products intensifies and regulatory frameworks grow more complex, the role of the private sector in shaping the future of tropical timber trade has never been more critical than now. On 16 May 2025, the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) brought together timber industry leaders, government authorities, certification bodies, and scientific experts for an intensive day of dialogue and exchange on trade and market challenges and the increasing responsibility of the private sector in Lomé, Togo.