A strong collaboration of the government, private sector and civil societies in the FLEGT VPA process has resulted in the completed concept and plan for the Thai Timber Legality Assurance System (THA-TLAS). THA-TLAS will strengthen the efficiency and transparency of supply chain control and Thailand’s timber certification.
At the current stage, the Royal Forest Department is heading the development of THA-TLAS system, putting in place novel mechanisms like a systematized electronic data linkage with other government agencies and due diligence-based import control. On 15 December 2022, at the 7th FLEGT VPA Ad-Hoc Working Group Meeting, members reviewed the current update of THA-TLAS and gave recommendations to the Royal Forest Department.
As a side event, on 16 December, The working group had a field study at the Laem Chabang Port to exchange lessons about import control with experienced agencies to feed back into the timber import control. They met Forest Checkpoint, Customs and Fisheries Department. The Fisheries Department is a model agency for traceability; they were one of the first to employ an efficient import control system that allows traceability to the origin source.
