Strengthening Forest Governance in Eastern Partnership Countries
The event took place on 23-24 October 2025 in Yerevan, Armenia.
Objectives
This workshop was designed to help stakeholders from Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries implement effective wood tracking systems (WTS) as a means to control illegal timber harvesting, improve forest governance, and promote sustainable forestry, in alignment with the requirements of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). The event enhanced knowledge sharing through an overview of forest management trends, key WTS tools, introduction to technologies, country case studies, and interactive sessions.
Participants
The meeting brought together representatives from line ministries, forestry agencies, research institutions, academia, CSOs, and other relevant government bodies from EaP countries. Representatives of EU Member States, EU institutions, and other international partners were invited to take part in discussions.
Background
Deforestation and forest degradation drive climate change and biodiversity loss. Illegal logging harms forests and communities, undermines sustainable forest management, and weakens transparent international trade. As the EU is a major consumer of timber from its Eastern neighbours, EU Member States and their companies can contribute to sustainable trade by reducing the entry of illegal timber into their markets and, thus, gain benefits in the long run. Promotion of legal and sustainable wood-based value chains would, on the other hand, create employment and economic activity in exporting countries. This workshop—organised under the EU4Environment Programme (Activity 4.3) — supports Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries in preventing illegal logging, aligning with EU legislation, and promoting sustainable timber trade through stronger control systems and capacity building.
Presentation slides:
23 October 2025
Setting the Scene:
Presentations by the EaP countries on forest utilisation, governance, and control: Armenia | Georgia | Moldova | Ukraine
Session 1: Introduction to WTS: Definitions, trends, and the Eastern Partnership context
Introduction to national WTS (Antoine de la Rochefordière, ONFI)
System design, technologies, and tools for wood tracking (Antoine de la Rochefordière, ONFI)
Session 2: System design, technologies and tools for wood tracking
Introduction to national WTS (Antoine de la Rochefordière, ONFI)
Introduction to Romania’s WTS “SUMAL 2” (Bogdan Popa, Professor, Romania)
Examples of WTS (Antoine de la Rochefordière, ONFI)
Pilot Forest Monitoring Platform – Moldova (Cédric Lardeux, ONFI)
24 October 2025
The EUDR framework: Key concepts (Alain Verney, ONFI)
National Pathways to EUDR Compliance: Risk Assessment and Readiness (Alain Verney, ONFI)
Key takeaways (Cédric Lardeux, ONFI)
Pictures from the event.