Wood Policy Encouraging the Increase of Domestic Markets for Legal and Sustainable Wood

With funding from the Government of Japan, ITTO is supporting projects in three Southeast Asian countries (Indonesia, Thailand and Viet Nam) aimed at increasing domestic markets for legal and sustainable wood.

The project a part of to respond major concern on the scale of illegal logging and timber theft. The estimated value of the illegal timber trade globally was at US$ 152 billion.

The international community has taken various steps in recent decades to curb illegal trade, with some success. But more needs to be done, and a major step forward will be the development of robust domestic markets for legally and sustainably produced timber in the tropics.


Teak logs in the Kroweng Krawia plantation, Kanchanaburi Province of Thailand, destined for the domestic market. Photo: T. Yanuariadi/ITTO

The project identified 17 lessons from the three countries, which may also be applicable in other tropical wood-producing countries.

  1. Supply-side management
  2. Demand-side management
  3. Evolving national strategies
  4. Wood use in construction
  5. Reducing the flammability of wooden buildings
  6. Setting standards
  7. International cooperation on low-cost wood-based housing
  8. Carbon credits for private-sector participants
  9. Support for smallholder forest plantation owners to add value
  10. Green public procurement policies
  11. Effective and easy-to-implement regulations
  12. Timber legality assurance systems
  13. Supplier declarations of conformity
  14. Industry hubs
  15. Data
  16. Capacity building
  17. Awareness campaigns

Following those findings, there are 17 proposed actions plan that constitute a possible approach for countries interested in further developing their domestic markets for legal and sustainably produced timber.

The full unedited report on which this policy brief is based (Sustainable Wood Use in Selected Countries of Southeast Asia Region–PP-A/53-323H) is posted here. And the full report is available in English only


Source: ITTO

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