Posted on December, 16 2015

Over June 29th and 30th 2015, TRAFFIC, WWF and the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar (RGOZ), convened the 3rd East African Timber Trade Stakeholder’s Forum at the Grand Palace Hotel in Stone Town, Zanzibar. This year’s Forum was aimed at examining the interconnectedness of the illegal trade in timber in Eastern and Southern Africa, including the West Indian Ocean. In addition, it reviewed the progress on the actions identified at the Forums in 2013 and 2014 as well as how national timber trade governance has changed over time.

The Forum brought together 51 participants representing regional agencies such as the South African Development Community (SADC) and East African Community (EAC), government institutions including Tanzania Forest Services and Kenya Forest Service, civil society organizations (CSOs) such as the Tanzania Natural Resource Forum, the private sector (timber traders) and journalists from several media platforms.  The Forum for the first time had the participation of government representatives from Uganda, Mozambique, and Madagascar.