Review of GLSTF 2024

The Global Legal & Sustainable Timber Forum 2024 (GLSTF 2024) was successfully held on 11-12 September 2024, at MGM COTAI in Macao, China. As a significant international cooperation output, the Forum was co-hosted by the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute of the Macao SAR (IPIM), and organized by the Secretariat of the Global Green Supply Chains Initiative (GGSC). With the theme "Together Towards Reliable and Effective Global Timber Supply Chains”, the GLSTF 2024 attracted 800 guests from over 40 countries and regions. The GLSTF is a global ministerial-level meeting based on the demands of the timber industry, and also the first international conference on the timber industry held in Macao. It not only presented significant cooperation achievements in the global timber industry, but also provided a platform for the display of innovative products around the world.

Opening Ceremony

The Global Legal & Sustainable Timber Forum 2024 (GLSTF 2024) kicked off on 11 September. The opening ceremony was officiated by Ho Iat Seng, Chief Executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region, Zheng Xincong, Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao S.A.R., and Sun Xiangyang, Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Macao Special Administrative Region, along with ministerial-level delegates from countries such as the Central African Republic, the Republic of Fiji, the Republic of the Congo and Peru.

════ Opening Remarks ════

Mr. Lei Wai Nong, Secretary for Economy and Finance of Macao SAR government, delivered welcome remarks.

Mr. Lei Wai Nong said in his speech that GLSTF, the first international conference on the timber industry held in Macao, is an integral part of the International Tropical Timber Organization’s efforts to promote the establishment of a legal and sustainable supply chain. The fact that the event has been held in Macao for two consecutive years reflects international organizations’ recognition of Macao’s MICE software and hardware capacities.

Ms. Sheam Satkuru, Executive Director of International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), delivered welcome remarks.

In her video address at GLSTF 2024, ITTO Executive Director Sheam Satkuru asserted that the GLSTF is a collaborative platform of timber industry stakeholders designed to strengthen networking and business exchanges among timber industry stakeholders to facilitate sustainable forest management and the legal and sustainable use and trade of timber and wood products. She also urged all sectors of society to support the development and improvement of a sustainable global timber supply chain amidst challenges and uncertainties.

Dr. Mohammed Nurudeen Iddrisu, Officer-In-Charge of ITTO, delivered a speech.

Dr. Mohammed Nurudeen Iddrisu said the GLSTF is an important and innovative forum that brings together timber-sector actors across supply chains to support the implementation of sustainable forestry and the legal and sustainable use of timber.

════ Keynote Addresses ════

Mr. Cheng Hong, Vice Administrator of China’s National Forestry and Grassland Administration, said that the continuous and rapid development of China's forestry and timber industry had created a large number of job opportunities, promoted ecological benefits and ecological protection, and created a "Chinese model" for the sustainable development of the global timber industry.

Mr. Gervais Mbata, Minister of Water, Forests, Hunting and Fishing of Central African Republic, shared administrative procedures in the forestry and timber industry of the Central African Republic, and the market opportunities of the forestry and timber industry in the country.

Ms. Alitia Bainivalu, Minister of Fisheries and Forestry of the Republic of Fiji, introduced the market situation in the forestry and timber industry of Fiji, and other relevant information such as export data.

Ms. Rosalie Matondo, Minister of Forest Economy of Republic of Congo, introduced forest management in the country.

Mr. Garo Joseph Batmanian, Director General of Brazil Forest Service, spoke via online video, introducing the actions Brazil had taken in sustainable forest management.

Dr. Wu Zhimin, Director of Forestry Division of United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), shared insights on the topic of "Forests and Timber Towards 2030 and Beyond".

════ High-Level Segment ════

Dr. Mohammed Nurudeen Iddrisu, Officer-In-Charge of International Tropical Timber Organization, presided over the high-level segment themed “Together Towards Reliable and Effective Global Timber Supply Chains”.

Guests of the high-level segment include:

· Ms. Nelly Paredes del Castillo, Executive Director, National Forest and Wildlife Service (SERFOR), Republic of Peru
· Mr. Mazlan bin Othman, Senior Undersecretary, Timber, Tobacco and Kenaf Industries Development Division, Ministry of Plantation & Commodities, Malaysia
· Mr. Hervé Martial Maidou, Executive Secretary, Central African Forests Commission (COMIFAC)
· Ms. Ashley Amidon, Executive Director, International Wood Products Association (IWPA)
· Mr. She Xuebin, Board Chairman & CEO, Nature Home (China) Co. Ltd & Nature Wood Group Co., Ltd.

Achievements Release

Several international cooperation achievements were released during the GLSTF 2024, thereby building a collaborative and win-win platform for the global timber industry.

The Full Operation of Global Timber Index (GTI) Platform

Action Framework for Promoting Legal & Sustainable Timber Supply Chains 2024

The specific objective of the Action Framework is to identify and implement a series of concrete and practical actions in various fields of timber industry, with a view to building legal and sustainable timber supply chains and promoting timber production and trade, sustainable green finance and investment, innovative technologies, technology transfer, and industrial collaboration.

View the full text of the Action Framework

Demonstration Action of Integration on Green Finance and Green Supply Chains (GF&GS)

Demonstration Action of Collaboration on Central Africa-China Timber Industrial Clusters and Parks

Memorable Moments

════ Main Forum ════

High-Level Segment: Together Towards Reliable & Effective Global Timber Supply Chains

Session I: Restoring Reliable and Stable Timber Resource Supplies

Session II: Enhancing Trust and Effectiveness along Timber Supply Chains

Session III: Prospects for Revitalizing Global Timber Supply Chains

════ Specialized Sub-forum ════

Four specialized sub-forums were held during the GLSTF 2024, and the outputs are of great significance for promoting the development of the global legal and sustainable timber industry.

Specialized Sub-forum 1:
Timber Legality and Sustainability

Delegates from International Tropical Timber Organization, Forestry Division of United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, International Wood Products Association, Brazilian Association of Mechanically-Processed Timber, Vietnam Timber and Forest Products Association, Indian Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Ghana Forestry Commission, Malaysian Timber Certification Council, Thai Royal Forestry Department, and other organizations discussed topics including potential impacts on and responses to tropical timber producers towards emerging timber trade requirements (EUDR), updates on national forest certification scheme to support legal and sustainable supply chains, etc.

Specialized Sub-forum 2:
Resources, Markets and Trade of Legal and Sustainable Timber

Mr. Li Jiafeng, President of China Timber & Wood Products Distribution Association (CTWPDA), introduced the current state of China's timber industry. Mr. Benoit Jobbé Duval, Secretary-General of International Tropical Timber Technical Association (ATIBT) shared information on cutting-edge technologies and development directions in the field of timber processing. Mr. Patrice Kamkuimo-Piam, Senior Programme Officer of TRAFFIC, analyzed the current situation, opportunities, and challenges of the African timber market. In addition, delegates from Fiji provided detailed introduction to timber market and export of the country.

Specialized Sub-forum 3:
Advanced Technology and Machinery for Timber Processing

Delegates from industry associations such as the China Wood Protection Industry Association and the Indonesian Sawmill and Woodworking Association, as well as enterprises and research institutions from many countries, participated in the sub-forum, engaging in discussions and exchanges on topics such as "Green Innovation and Sustainable Development of Solid Wood Furniture" and "Technical Integration and Product Innovation in the Whole-House Customization Ecosystem". In addition, certificates for "Benchmark Brands of New-Quality Productivity for Going Global 2024" were awarded to some outstanding enterprises.

Specialized Sub-forum 4:
Green Finance and Innovative Facilitating Measures for Green Supply Chains

The officiating guests for this sub-forum included, Mr. Ip Sio Kai, President, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area-Green Finance Alliance (GBA-GFA); Mr. Vincent U, President, Board of Directors of Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) of the Macao Special Administrative Region; Mr. Yuan Bing, Chairman, Global Green Supply Chain of Forest Products (Macao) Federation; Dr. Luo Xinjian, Secretary General, Global Green Supply Chains Initiative (GGSC); Mr. Bruno Guay, Advisor, Private Sector Engagement and Carbon Finance of Central African Forest Initiative (CAFI), etc. And Ms. Rosalie Matondo, Minister of Forest Economy of Republic of the Congo, attended as a special guest and delivered a speech.

════ Other Side Events ════

Legal & Sustainable Timber Display

The Display featured the following product categories: wood materials, wood-based panel, wooden door, wooden furniture, etc., showcasing advanced technologies and products from the upstream, midstream, and downstream segments of the timber industry chain, as well as displaying international organizations, industry associations, certification bodies, and other supply chain service providers, so as to build an international timber industry platform for exchange and display that integrates functions such as trade promotion, investment cooperation, innovation aggregation, and learning exchanges.

B2B Matchings

B2B matchings were held during the forum. The event organized both suppliers and buyers of timber and timber products from around the world to engage in face-to-face matchmaking, expand business areas, jointly promote industrial development, achieve resource sharing and mutual benefit, and open a new chapter of global cooperation. An overseas company commented that their participation in the business matching session yielded significant outcomes, and they successfully established initial connections with potential partners during the event.

She Power Roundtable Dialogue

The roundtable dialogue explored the role and power of women in promoting the sustainable development of the global timber industry, aiming to help "She" access to more resources, create a better professional development environment for "She", facilitate the growth of "She" power, serve forestry enterprises in the world, and contribute to the sustainable development of the global timber industry.

Youth Leadership Workshop

The event “Global Forestry Youth Leadership Workshop: Wood and Bamboo Sustainable Buildings” was held during the forum, aiming to strengthen exchanges and cooperation among global youth in the forestry sector, explore feasible action plans, give play to the proactive leadership of young people, and enhance the ability of global forestry youth to promote the balanced development among economy, society, environment, and urban and rural construction.

The expected outputs of the Action Framework may involve but are not limited to the following specific fields and actions.

Partnership networking. Establish strong networks by fostering partnerships and collaboration among timber industry stakeholders based on mutual respect, trust and cooperation and a win-win aspiration to support legal and sustainable forest management and wood product supply chains. The GLSTF, which performs this kind of role annually, will enhance its efforts to encourage actions of networking, collaboration and business exchange among stakeholders.

Information sharing. Promote and encourage information exchange with and among the private sector and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of policies and measures related to legal and sustainable timber production and trade. The Global Timber Index (GTI) provides a valuable platform for enhancing the quality and regularity of timber market information sharing, which should be improved and upgraded to expand its coverage of countries and enterprises while providing a multi-dimensional service.

Market access facilitation. Support a stable, fair and transparent business environment by facilitating more reliable and predictable market access opportunities for the global wood products trade, through trade facilitation, improved supply and service systems, enhanced international logistics efficiency, and win-win timber supply chains. More collaboration and B2B activities will be organized based on partnership networking and information sharing.

Certification and traceability innovation. Introduce and utilize new technology and tools, including digital and intelligent technologies, to ensure the legitimacy and sustainability of timber sources and improve international and national certification schemes and standards. A study on Blockchain-based Timber Traceability System (BTTS) has been carried out through a collaborative mechanism, and a simulation platform has been developed and tested. The use of this BTTS system in real business scenarios for timber traceability will be encouraged.

Innovative technologies and technology transfer. Provide support to encourage the accelerated adoption of advanced technologies, machinery and equipment, including the intelligent and digital development, which is essential for the sustainable development of the global timber industry, and promote exchange and transfer of advanced timber processing technology. The GLSTF platform will organize events and activities to this end.

Ways and means for sustainable green finance and investment. Formulate and develop innovative incentive mechanisms for sustainable green finance and investment, such as payments for environmental services, to increase investment in support of sustainable forest management and sustainable supply chains. Based on the GLSTF platform, a demonstration action is being formulated for integration on Sustainable Green Finance and Green Supply Chains (GF&GS).

Industrial clusters and parks development. Encourage the building and development of industrial clusters and parks to support enterprises in adopting legal and sustainable best practices and advanced technologies. A demonstration action is being developed in a “source to customer” supply chain collaboration between Central African and Chinese timber industrial clusters and parks that, among other things, and provide enterprises in the clusters or parks that adhere to legal and sustainable best practices with one-stop services and policy preferences such as tax exemptions and green lane for customs clearance.

Capacity building and training. Support producers and consumers to build capacity for achieving legality and sustainability in forest management, governance assurance enforcement, timber production and processing, industrial development, marketing and trading, technology upgrading, finance and investment promotion, and advocacy and awareness-raising. In collaboration with relevant partners, capacity-building and training programmes and activities will be identified and developed accordingly.

This Action Framework will be based on the principles of voluntariness, openness, and transparency. Its implementation will comprise various demonstration actions within the framework of expected fields and outputs. All interested stakeholders are welcome to participate in its formulation and implementation.

The success of the Action Framework for enhancing legal and sustainable supply chains depends on cooperation and collaboration among timber industry stakeholders. Let's work together to build and promote reliable and effective global legal and sustainable timber supply chains, by jointly creating and implementing the Action Framework and associated successful demonstration actions.

Review of GLSTF 2024

Opening Ceremony

Achievements Release

Memorable Moments

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