2022/0142M(NLE) | [ParlTrack]

Draft opinion
Paragraph 2

2. Stresses that poor governance and corruption in the forestry sector accelerate illegal logging and forest degradation; acknowledges Guyana’s commitment to and political will for sound forest management;, as well as the impressive results achieved so far, stresses the need to step up efforts to combat corruption and to reinforce data collection to improve the implementation of the traceability system, as well as to take into account the expansion of the oil and gas production and its consequences on mangroves ;

Amendment 11 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 2

Amendment 12 #

Michèle RIVASI, Caroline ROOSE

Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)

2a. Stresses that the success of governance, trade and law enforcement in the area of forestry is also dependent on combating corruption and fraud of all kinds throughout the timber supply chain, and therefore welcomes Guyana’s efforts to achieve greater transparency and looks forward to continued positive cooperation in the fight against illegal logging and forest degradation;

Amendment 13 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Recalls that sustainable and inclusive forest management and governance is essential to achieve the objectives set in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement; recalls the importance of mining as a major driver of tropical deforestation, resulting in substantial soil erosion and contamination, increased forest fragmentation and mercury pollution of rivers and streams; calls on the government of Guyana to take further steps in curbing illegal mining; underlines the risks posed by Guyana’s expanding oil, gas and mining industries; notes with concern the lack of coherence between regulation in the forest sector and that in the mining sector;

Amendment 14 #

Catherine CHABAUD, Stéphane BIJOUX, Jan-Christoph OETJEN, Michèle RIVASI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Recalls that sustainable and inclusive forest management and governance is essential to achieve the objectives set in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement; ~~underlines the risks posed by~~notes that Guyana’ is expanding its oil, gas and mining industries; stresses in this regard that this should be done in a coherent manner to be compatible with international documents and instruments, including EU legislation; welcomes further agreements aiming to complement the FLEGT-VPA on environmental matters; notes with concern the lack of coherence between regulation in the forest sector and that in the mining sector;

Amendment 15 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Recalls that sustainable and inclusive forest management and governance is essential to achieve the objectives set in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement, notably through the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs); underlines the risks posed by Guyana’s expanding oil, gas and mining industries; notes with concern the lack of coherence between regulation in the forest sector and that in the mining sector;

Amendment 16 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Recalls that sustainable and inclusive forest management and governance is essential to achieve the objectives set in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement; ~~underlines the risks posed by Guyana’s expanding oil, gas and mining industries; notes with concern~~notes the lack of coherence between regulation in the forest sector and that in the mining sector;

Amendment 17 #

Michèle RIVASI, Caroline ROOSE

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3

3. Recalls that sustainable and inclusive forest management and governance is essential to achieve the objectives set in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement; underlines the risks posed by Guyana’s expanding oil, gas and mining industries; notes with concern the lack of coherence between regulation in the forest sector and that in the mining sector, as well as the lack of coherence between the orientations taken by the European Union’s in the field of energy and its environmental policies, notably with regard to forest protection;

Amendment 18 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)

3a. Insists upon the full implementation of the principles of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) of Indigenous People and Local Communities, notably in the context of mining; recalls that it shall be obtained as a condition of the purchase or the use of customary forest lands, in compliance with international human rights laws, namely the ILO Convention N°169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples and the standards set out in the FAO Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests;

Amendment 19 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)

3a. Stresses the importance of developing partnerships and cooperation mechanisms to jointly address forest governance in all aspects, including for the sharing of information;

Amendment 2 #

Patrizia TOIA

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1

1. Strongly supports the conclusion of the negotiations on the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) on forest law enforcement, government and trade (FLEGT) between the EU and Guyana, which will improve sustainable forest management and governance, reduce illegal logging and contribute to combating climate change; highlights that VPAs are part and parcel of the EU efforts to achieve the targets set by the Paris Agreement and the UN Agenda 2030, by means of further strengthening the international cooperation between producing and importing countries;

Amendment 20 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4

4. ~~Underlines the need to ensure full~~Welcomes the fact that all interested stakeholders were effectively involved into the negotiations process; underlines the need to ensure effective and adequate involvement of all relevant stakeholders, in~~volvement, notably of~~cluding, the private sector, civil society, women and local and indigenous communities, ~~throughout~~in the implementation and monitoring ~~phases~~ of the FLEGT-VPA;

Amendment 21 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 4

4. Underlines the need to ensure full stakeholder involvement~~, notably of women~~ and improve gender equity, notably of women, youth and marginalized groups and local and indigenous communities and civil society, throughout the implementation and monitoring phases of the FLEGT-VPA;

Amendment 22 #

Catherine CHABAUD, Stéphane BIJOUX, Jan-Christoph OETJEN, Michèle RIVASI

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Stresses that the success of the entire FLEGT-VPA initiative depends on, among other things, guaranteeing full recognition of the customary rights of local communities and indigenous people, notably Amerindian communities, protecting environmental human right defenders and whistle-blowers, and improving the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises to conduct their activities legally; recalls in this regard the importance of avoiding additional burden on SMEs and assisting these companies from a legal perspective to be in compliance with the new international agreements, instruments and documents regarding the environment;

Amendment 23 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Stresses that the success of the entire FLEGT initiative depends on, among other things, guaranteeing full recognition of the customary rights of local communities and indigenous people, notably Amerindian communities, protecting environmental human right defenders and whistle-blowers, and improving the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises to conduct their activities legally; stresses that the EU should learn from inspirational projects on sustainable forest management from indigenous and other communities that have ancestral knowledge on forests;

Amendment 24 #

Michèle RIVASI, Caroline ROOSE

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Stresses that the success of the entire FLEGT initiative depends on, among other things, guaranteeing effective protection for the land and full recognition of the customary rights of local communities and indigenous people, notably Amerindian communities, including the right to give or withhold their consent to any timber concession on their land, protecting environmental human right defenders and whistle- blowers, and improving the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises to conduct their activities legally;

Amendment 25 #

Patrizia TOIA

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5

5. Stresses that the success of the entire FLEGT initiative depends on, among other things, guaranteeing full recognition of the customary rights of local communities and indigenous people, notably Amerindian communities, as a question of social justice, protecting environmental human right defenders and whistle-blowers, and improving the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises to conduct their activities legally;

Amendment 26 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)

5a. Reiterates its call on the Union to comply with the principle of policy coherence for development and to ensure consistency between its development, trade, agriculture, energy and climate policies;

Amendment 27 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 6

6. Calls on the Commission to ~~strengthe~~maintain the funding allocation to the forest partnership with Guyana to accompany the implementation of the VPA as part of the review process for the multi- annual indicative programme for Guyana (2025-2027).

Amendment 3 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1

Amendment 4 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1

Amendment 5 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1

Amendment 6 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)

1a. Acknowledges the role of Guyana’s forests in the economy and job creation contributing by 2% to the GDP and by 6% to job creation and, therefore, economic growth and development; highlights that environmental, social and economic dimensions should be duly considered in a balanced and integrated manner; regression in the achievement of SDGs, including income depletion and loss of jobs, as well as regression in the achievements made by the country must be avoided; points out the opportunity provided by the forestry sector for job creation and the economy and strongly encourages use of this opportunity to increase its contribution, always accompanied by sound management thanks to the VPA;

Amendment 7 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)

1a. Stresses that VPAs represent an important legal framework for the EU and its partner countries, and that they are made possible by the commitment of stakeholders and their good cooperation; stresses, in this regard, that VPAs with new partners should be promoted;

Amendment 8 #

Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 b (new)

1b. Is aware that the amount of timber traded between the EU and Guyana is small, accounting for 8% of Guyana’s timber exports; feels that the VPA will not only contribute to greater transparency in the timber trade, but may also open up greater opportunities for Guyana to export this natural resource to the EU and to new markets, thus enhancing the country’s development prospects;

Amendment 9 #

Patrizia TOIA

Draft opinion
Paragraph 2

2. Stresses that poor governance and corruption in the forestry sector accelerate illegal logging and forest degradation; acknowledges Guyana’s commitment to and political will for sound forest management; stresses the need to step up efforts to combat corruption and to reinforce data collection to improve the implementation of the traceability system; urges therefore the Commission to assist government and authorities in Guyana all along the process of issuing FLEGT licenses and provide the necessary technical support to ensure the full implementation and correct operationalisation of the Guyana Timber Legality Assurance System (GTLAS); recalls to this end that monitoring, follow- up and assessment arrangements are integral part of a sound and effective agreement;

source: 735.824

2022/10/13 INTA 29 amendments...

Amendment 1 #

Motion for a resolution
Citation 7 a (new)

— having regard to the Paris Climate Agreement;

Amendment 10 #

Miapetra KUMPULA-NATRI

Motion for a resolution
Recital N

N. whereas the purpose and expected benefits of FLEGT VPAs go beyond the facilitation of trade in legal timber, as they are also designed to bring about systemic changes in forest governance, law enforcement, transparency and the inclusion of various stakeholders in the political decision-making process, in particular civil society organisations, workers organisations and indigenous communities, as well as support for economic integration and respect for international sustainable development goals;

Amendment 11 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Recital O a (new)

O a. Whereas widespread illegal deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon constitutes a serious concern that should be addressed in the VPA;

Amendment 12 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1

1. Welcomes the conclusion of negotiations on the VPA between the EU and Guyana,; acknowledges that the VPA has a high significance for the country as well as potential for boosting EU-Guyana trade relations and believes that the successful negotiations of this VPA demonstrate the importance of the Union’s Delegations to third countries; which will ensure that only legally logged timber will be imported into the EU from Guyana, promote sustainable forest management practices and sustainable trade in legally produced timber, and improve forest governance, law enforcement (including labour and occupational, health and safety obligations), human rights, transparency, accountability and institutional resilience in Guyana;

Amendment 13 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1

1. Welcomes the conclusion of negotiations on the VPA between the EU and Guyana, which will ensure that only legally logged timber will be imported into the EU from Guyana, promote sustainable forest management practices and sustainable trade in legally produced timber, and improve forest governance, law enforcement (including labour and occupational, health and safety obligations), human rights, transparency, accountability and institutional resilience in Guyana, and at the same time help to improve trade relations between Guyana and the EU;

Amendment 14 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2

2. Recognises that the full implementation and enforcement of the VPA will be a long process which will require the adoption of a whole set of legislation and adequate administrative capacity and expertise to ensure its implementation and enforcement;;

Amendment 15 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)

2 a. Recalls that sustainable and inclusive forest management and governance is essential to achieve the objectives set in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement; underlines the risks posed by Guyana’s expanding oil, gas and mining industries; notes with concern the lack of coherence between regulation in the forest sector and that in the mining sector;

Amendment 16 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3

3. Stresses that the implementation and monitoring stage requires genuine consultations and multi- stakeholder involvement, including the meaningful participation of civil society and local and indigenous communities in decision- making guaranteeing the respect of land tenure rights and the Free, Prior and Informed Consent principle; recalls the need to enhance transparency and ensure the effective public disclosure of information and the timely sharing of documents with local and indigenous peoples;

Amendment 17 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3

3. Welcomes the high stakeholder participation throughout the negotiation process; Stresses that the implementation stage requires consultations and multi- stakeholder involvement, including the participation of civil society, business representatives and local and indigenous communities in decision- making; recalls the need to enhance transparency and ensure the effective public disclosure of information and the timely sharing of documents with local and indigenous peoples;

Amendment 18 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)

3 a. Calls to strengthen the role and participation of the private sector in the VPA implementation and to assist operators, in particular SMEs, in building capacity to ensure better clarity, understanding and compliance with the requirements of the agreement;

Amendment 19 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5

5. Welcomes the recent adoption of the joint implementation framework and calls on the Government of Guyana to follow a concrete, time-bound and measurable approach; calls on the Commission to report to Parliament regularly on the implementation of the agreement, including on the work of the Joint Implementation Committee;

Amendment 2 #

Motion for a resolution
Citation 7 b (new)

— Having regard to the UN Sustainable Development Goals;

Amendment 20 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6

6. Stresses that the success of the FLEGT VPA also depends on tackling fraud and corruption throughout the timber supply chain; urges the Government of Guyana to reinforce data collection to improve the implementation of the traceability system, and to continue to work to stop widespread corruption and address other factors fuelling illegal logging and forest degradation, with particular regard to customs and other authorities that will play a pivotal role in the implementation and enforcement of the VPA; stresses the need to end impunity in the forest sector by protecting environmental human right defenders and whistle-blowers and ensuring effective remedies for human rights violations; in this context, welcomes the ratification of the Escazú Agreement by Guyana and stresses the need to guarantee full recognition of land tenure rights of local communities and indigenous peoples, notably Amerindian communities, and the principle of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) of Indigenous People and Local Communities, including in the context of mining; recalls that the FPIC is a pre- condition before the purchase or the use of customary forest lands, as recognised in international human rights law, namely ILO Convention N°169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples and the standards set out in the FAO Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests;

Amendment 21 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6

6. Welcomes Guyana’s efforts so far in making advances towards greater transparency and look forward to further positive cooperation in the fight against illegal logging; Stresses that the success of the FLEGT VPA also depends on tackling fraud and corruption throughout the timber supply chain; urges the Government of Guyana to continue to work to stop widespread corruption and address other factors fuelling illegal logging and forest degradation, with particular regard to customs and other authorities that will play a pivotal role in the implementation and enforcement of the VPA; stresses the need to end impunity in the forest sector;

Amendment 22 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7

7. ~~Recognis~~Welcomes that the process of negotiating the VPA has allowed sectors to identify shared goals and priorities to work towards sustainable forest management and trade cooperation, as well as offer an important opportunity for societies to allow for participative management of their forests at local, community and regional levels and even up to national or federal level;

Amendment 23 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)

7 a. Stresses the need to address the regional dimension of illegal logging and the transport, processing and trade of illegal timber throughout the supply chain; calls for this regional dimension, in particular in relation to the Brazilian Amazon, to be included in the VPA evaluation process in the form of an assessment of the link between the existence of weaker enforcement mechanisms in neighbouring countries and the increase of exports from such countries to the EU;

Amendment 24 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8

8. Calls for ~~gender analysis to be mainstreamed into all activities and projects linked to the implementation of the VPA; calls for~~ quantitative and qualitative ~~gender-disaggregated~~ analysis of land tenure, ownership of assets and financial inclusion in sectors impacted by trade; calls on the Commission to support these endeavours with technical and human resources;

Amendment 25 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)

8 a. Asks the Commission to report to the European Parliament regularly on the implementation of the agreement, including on the work of the Joint Monitoring and Review Committee;

Amendment 26 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9

9. Believes that the EU plays an important role in improving both the supply and the demand side of timber in order to reject illegally produced timber and assist exporting countries in their efforts to combat illegal logging and corruption, which results in the destruction of their forests, climate change and human rights violations; recognises that VPAs will continue to be an important legal framework for both the EU and its partner countries under the new proposal for a Deforestation Regulation; underlines that ~~this has been~~VPAs provide an important legal framework for both the EU and its partner countries, made possible bywith the good cooperation and engagement ofby the ~~partner~~ countries concerned; s~~upports the Commission in finding additional potential partners for future FLEGT VPAs;~~tresses therefore that new VPAs with additional partners shall be promoted; recognises that the VPA with Guyana as well as those with other countries prove that trade agreements can work without threatening the imposition of sanctions, by including different means of control and cooperation; the Commission and the authorities of Guyana should conduct an exhaustive assessment on the impact of the VPA and the proposal of the Deforestation Regulation on the workers and small producers of the forest sector and other related sectors, which will be affected by the increased logging controls and checks.

Amendment 27 #

Jörgen WARBORN, Iuliu WINKLER, Daniel CASPARY, Arnaud DANJEAN, Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Angelika WINZIG, Gabriel MATO

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)

9 a. Acknowledges the role of Guyana’s forests in the economy and job creation, contributing by 2% to the GDP and by 6% to job creation for economic growth; highlights that the VPA creates a great opportunity to boost job creation in the forestry sector.

Amendment 28 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)

9 a. Calls for the EU to ensure the coherence of the VPA with all its policies, including in the fields of development, the environment, agriculture and trade;

Amendment 29 #

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 b (new)

9 b. Asks the Commission to report to the Parliament annually on progress made by Guyana in implementing the VPA, including against the requirements of this resolution, as well as on the activities of the Joint Implementation Committee, with a view to enabling an informed decision once the delegated act authorising the acceptance of FLEGT licences is proposed

Amendment 3 #

Marco CAMPOMENOSI

Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)

B a. Whereas the forest sector fully contributes to the economic growth of Guyana, employing about 20.000 people; whereas the forest management practices and the trade in legally produced timber should be socially and economically sustainable to guarantee that people directly or indirectly involved can benefit from trade;

Amendment 4 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)

B a. Whereas since 1996, conversation efforts have been made and the annual deforestation rate have been very low, averaging around 0.06 percent;

Amendment 5 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital D

D. whereas illegal mining and illegal logging remains a concern in Guyana as both practices damage the forests of Guyana; whereas most of the deforestation in Guyana is attributed to fires (50 %) and mining (41 %), be it legal or illegal; whereas although deforestation caused by conversion for agriculture only accounts for around 5 %, it is nevertheless a concern;

Amendment 6 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital F

F. whereas the volume of timber traded between Guyana and the EU is modest, with just 8 % of timber exports from Guyana going to Europe in 2018 and only around half of those going to the EU; whereas Guyana’s biggest overall trading partner is the US and Singapore the second, but for timber the largest export market is the Asia-Pacific region; whereas the VPA would open up more opportunities for Guyana to export to the EU and new markets;

Amendment 7 #

Motion for a resolution
Recital F

F. whereas the volume of timber traded between Guyana and the EU is modest, with just 8 % of timber exports from Guyana going to Europe in 2018 and only around half of those going to the EU; whereas the VPA would open up more opportunities for Guyana to export to the EU and new markets, which would increase its development opportunities;

Amendment 8 #