Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Vietnamis aiming to build a transparent and legal wood industry to supportexports of timber products and bolster the domestic timber manufacturingindustry.

The need emerges as Vietnam becomesone of the world’s largest exporters of wood and wooden products, puttingit under scrutiny from major trading partners.

In June, the US Department ofCommerce (DOC) initiated an investigation into tax evasion for plywood productsimported from Vietnam and suspected use of Chinese materials.

Other major importers of Vietnamesetimber products including the European Union (EU), China, Japan and theRepublic of Korea are also eyeing stricter traceability regulations to ensurelegal timber origins.

To facilitate exports of this keyproduct, Vietnam is trying to build the Vietnam Timber Legality Assurance(VNTLAS) system along with the early issuance of EU Forest Law Enforcement,Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licence for exports of wood products to theEU market.

Joining the EU in implementing theFLTGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance andTrade (VPA/FLEGT) will not only promote exports of Vietnamese wood products tothe EU but also increase prestige and open doors to other markets.

The agreement is in line with Vietnam’sLaw on Forestry, both prohibiting the import, export, exploitation, processingand trading of illegal timber.

“Boarding the VPA/FLEGT ship withthe EU would take the domestic timber manufacturing industry to another level”,said Ngo Sy Hoai, Vice President, Secretary-General of Vietnam Timber andForest Product Association (VIFORES).

Beneficiaries would include morethan 3,000 processing and exporting enterprises, 340 craft villages andapproximately 1.4 million forest farmer households.

According to Hoai, most Vietnamesefirms processing and exporting timber to the EU can meet these standards.

“This action would only systematisewhat the industry has been doing, now placing everything under a legalframework for transparent enforcement,” he said.

To fully implement VPA/FLEGT, theMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has completed a draftdecree for implementing the Vietnam Timber Legality Assurance to submit to theGovernment for promulgation.

VNTLAS is a national system toensure compliance with legal timber legislation at each stage of the supplychain, including harvesting, importing, purchasing, selling, transporting,processing and exporting.

The decree also requires theclassification of enterprises into two groups: Group I and Group II. Group Ifeatures firms fully complying with legal timber regulations and are notsubject to examination and origin verification when filling to export.

VNTLAS works on the basis ofenterprises’ self-declaration and self-responsibility through the networkof the Enterprise Classification Information System and authority’sverification. This will decrease administrative work for firms while stillallowing authorities to keep the origins of timber products in check andencourage enterprises’ responsibility in law enforcement, according to DeputyMinister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan.

Enterprises that do not meet theclassification criteria will be subject to the inspection and certification oforigin before being granted export licences to the EU.

According to a quick surveyconducted by MARD, more than 90 percent of processing and exporting firms in Vietnambelong to Group I. Vietnam aims to have all firms in the wood industry to beclassified as Group I.

However, deputy director-general ofthe Department of Science and Technology and International Cooperation NguyenTuong Van has warned that “the most difficult time still lies ahead”.

When the decree comes into effect,but without FLEGT licences, enterprises still have to prove their productorigin to be eligible for export.

“Issuance of FLEGT certification forwood exporters to the EU needs to be done as soon as possible," she added

Besides, the classification ofenterprises can only be carried out six months after the implementation ofVPA/FLEGT.

“If VNTLAS can be operated at thebeginning of 2021, the first FLEGT can only be issued at the end of 2021 orearly 2022," Van said./.