The first meeting of the Indonesia, Malaysia, EU Ad Hoc Joint Task Force (JTF) on the European Union Deforestation-Free Regulation (EUDR) was convened in early August.
The meeting was co-chaired by Deputy Minister for Food and Agribusiness at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs of Indonesia, Musdhalifah Machmud; Secretary General, Ministry of Plantation and Commodities of Malaysia, Dato’ Mad Zaidi bin Mohd Karli; and Director for Green Diplomacy and Multilateralism and for the European Commission, Astrid Schomaker.
The co-chairs underscored their aim is to seek common interests between producers and consumers of plantation. The Ad Hoc JTF will establish a dialogue and relevant work streams led by the respective governments to build mutual understanding on the implementation of the regulation.
The meeting also agreed to the terms of reference for the Ad Hoc JTF which includes work on issues such as inclusivity of smallholders in the supply chain, relevant national certification schemes, including land legality and cut-off date for deforestation), traceability from producer to end-consumer, scientific data on deforestation and forest degradation and protection of data.
The Ad Hoc JTF will conclude its work by the end of 2024, its term could be extended upon mutual agreement.
Source: ITTO
