81310883-Technical advisory services to Tropical Timber Trade Facility (TTT) in Congo Basin, China and Europe

Brief description of the project:

The Tropical Timber Trade Facility (TTT) is a project of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and began in 2023. TTT tackles the illegal timber trade in the Congo Basin rainforest which is home to the second largest contiguous rainforest area in the world. The Congo Basin rainforest makes a decisive contribution to global climate protection and the preservation of biodiversity. It provides a livelihood for the local and indigenous population. However, it is increasingly threatened by deforestation.

Up to 80 per cent of the timber harvested commercially in the region is sold to China. TTT is therefore helping to bring together the forested member states of the Central African Forestry Commission COMIFAC (Cameroon, Gabon, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea) and Chinese partners such as the National Forest and Grassland Administration (NFGA). The partners from China and Central Africa want to agree on regulatory instruments and create incentives for a legal and sustainable timber trade between the two regions.

The COMIFAC is the principal political counterpart of TTT. The international organization is recognized for its role in sub-regional integration in terms of conservation and sustainable, concerted management of forest ecosystems. COMIFAC is also supported by other GIZ projects in its overall mission and the implementation of its work.

TTT also supports established systems that can be used to verify the legality and sustainability of commercially harvested timber. In addition, the project involves potential buyers of timber and timber products in Europe in North America. In this way, the project aims to promote legality and sustainability in the timber trade in a comprehensive manner and thus make a decisive contribution to preserving the rainforest in the Congo Basin.