The implementation of the EU-Vietnam Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade, along with the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, are expected to boost the value of local timber and help wood items penetrate new demanding markets.

The statement was made by Ngo Sy Hoai, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association. 

Hoai said recent years have seen wood exports to the EU market reach between US$1 billion and US$1.2 billion per year, adding that there are bright prospects ahead for local timber products as they seek to penetrate stringent markets once the EU-Vietnam Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA/FLEGT) and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) come into force. 

Moreover, the two agreements are anticipated to allow the local timber industry improve its prestige and gain greater trust from other markets such as the United States and Japan, Hoai noted. 

Sharing this viewpoint, a representative from the Vietnam Administration of Forestry under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development explained that Vietnam is currently exporting timber and forest products to over 120 countries and territories globally, with the EU being one of the five largest markets that enjoys stable purchasing power.

Although the demand among this market is projected to grow at a slow rate with the agreements entering into force, local wood items will gain trust from partners and consumers globally, allowing them to make greater inroads into other stringent markets.

At the ninth session of the 14th National Assembly, a resolution for the ratification of the EVFTA was approved, with the trade pact set to take effect on August 1. 

The VPA/FLEGT Agreement originally entered into force on June 1, 2019. At present, the Vietnamese side is urgently preparing for national legislation in order to grant FLEGT licenses, thus paving the way for domestic timber products to enter the EU and other prestigious markets.