Myanmar: All about the Myanmar FLEGT process

Forest cover in Myanmar is approximately 29 million hectares or about 43% of its national territory. Of this area, about 31% is managed by the State. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), between 2010 and 2015, Myanmar lost 2.7 million hectares of forests, about 8.6% of its forest cover.

In 2017, Myanmar´s timber exports to the EU were worth about EUR 32 million, a fall compared to EUR 66 million in 2007 according the FLEGT Independent Market Monitor.

Forests are the responsibility of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation (MONREC). The State-owned Myanma Timber Enterprise (MTE) is responsible for the harvesting, processing and sale of all commercial timber.

In January 2015, the FLEGT inception workshop took place and marked the beginning of Myanmar’s FLEGT process.