PEFC strengthens ties with forest industry in Vietnam

29 October 2015 News

PEFC and the Handicraft & Wood Association of Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA) will work together to develop PEFC Chain of Custody certification in Viet Nam: this was one of the key results from a week of outreach in the country.

PEFC-certified material from around the world is already used by many solid wood processing companies in Viet Nam - in particular by the furniture manufacturing members of HAWA. Focus is now switching to the development of a national forest certification system in the country, paving the way for the production of domestic PEFC-certified sources.

Given this evolution, PEFC and HAWA announced their intention to work together on a program that will promote PEFC Chain of Custody certification throughout Viet Nam. According to HAWA there are only a few companies in the country that currently have PEFC Chain of Custody.

“We believe that there is potentially a huge demand for PEFC Chain of Custody certification and PEFC-certified wood in Viet Nam that needs to be unleashed,” said Zung Dao at HAWA.

This was one of the many exciting outcomes from Vietnamwood, the largest woodworking industry expo in Viet Nam. Taking place last week in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnamwood proved to be an excellent platform to continue the work we have done over the last two years in the country.

The week also included a PEFC workshop on ‘Sustainable Forestry and Trade with PEFC Certification’ held at the Saigon Exhibition & Conference Centre. The workshop was an important occasion to bring together all those working in the forestry and related sectors, and interested in developing and participating in a high-quality, globally recognized national forest certification system in Viet Nam.

Speakers, including, Richard Laity PEFC Southeast Asia, Projects and Development Officer, and Vu Tan Phuong Director, International Cooperation Department, VAFS, highlighted the progress of the Vietnamese Academy of Forest Sciences (VAFS) in the development of the national certification system.

“The system is now drafted and being reviewed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for official approval,” announced Mr. Phuong during the workshop.  “It is expected that the approved system will be a new and effective instrument to further advance forest certification and sustainable forest management in Viet Nam.”