On 10 November 2020, representatives from the Delegation of the European Union to Thailand: Mr. Daniel Hachez, Minister – Counsellor, Head of Cooperation, Mr. Laurent Lourdais, Counsellor, Agriculture, SPS and Environment and Mrs. Sutthiya Chantawarangul, Programme Officer, along with Dr. Somrudee Nicrowattanayingyong, FLEGT Facilitator for Thailand, European Forest Institute (EFI), paid a courtesy visit to the Royal Forest Department to greet Mr. Adisorn Noochdamrong, Director of the Royal Forest Department, who was recently appointed to the office, and took the opportunity to discuss the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance, and Trade (FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership Agreement process towards agreement signing.
Mr. Noochdamrong reiterated Thailand’s commitment to sign the FLEGT VPA with the EU. He expressed hope that Thailand will be able to conclude the agreement with the EU by next year. To achieve this, he welcomes all visits from the European Delegation and all the concerned parties to drive the FLEGT VPA process together.
Mr. Hachez congratulated the appointments of Mr. Noochdamrong and Mr. Tanongsak Nontapa, the newly appointed Director of the Forest Economics Bureau, and is leading the Thailand-EU FLEGT Secretariat Office. He expressed appreciation for the commitment and active role of the Royal Forest Department in the FLEGT VPA. Mr. Hachez highlighted that the FLEGT VPA contributes to the SDGs goals, for instance, on climate change by combatting illegal logging. FLEGT license will benefit both Thailand and the EU. European consumers will be able to buy quality legal Thai timber products that are rich in varieties. For Thailand, the FLEGT license will elevate Thai timber products’ status and credibility in the international market. This will help expand the timber sector in Thailand, contributing to Thailand’s economic development.
In the meeting, the Delegation of the European Union to Thailand informed the Royal Forest Department that there is no set timeline for the FLEGT VPA negotiation process. The EU is hoping to proceed with the FLEGT VPA process parallel with the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Thailand. As sustainable development is the main issue that the European Union committed to, the new FTA will also focus on sustainable goods. To help Thailand develop the import control process, the EU will organize a joint remote workshop to share EUTR experience and explain any issues that Thailand may encounter.
The Royal Forest Department is eager to complete the VPA’s annexes and promised to take proactive actions to conclude the draft annexes. The Royal Forest Department will actively collaborate with the EFI, which has provided technical assistance to the annex drafting, and the FAO-EU FLEGT Programme, which has supported all the projects under the FLEGT VPA process. The Royal Forest Department informed about their plan to step-up the FLEGT VPA communication, informing that they will organize an event to introduce FLEGT VPA and displaying the FLEGT VPA achievement.
