Preparations begin for Guyana’s second VPA negotiation session

VPA negotiations betweenGuyanaand the European Commission are moving ahead, with two formal videoconferences having taken place since negotiations began. A draft of the timber legality definition has been discussed and is now being reviewed by local stakeholders. The two parties are also reviewing the scope of the VPA. The second VPA negotiation session will take place in Brussels in early July.

EFI conducted a mission to Guyana in early May. The main purposes of the mission were to get a greater understanding of Guyana’s existing legality assurance system and how it operates and to conduct a needs assessment for funding support to Guyana for VPA negotiations; the aim is to improve understanding of the local context and to provide further information on the VPA process if needed.