There is growing recognition that enhancing the legality of the production and trade of timber is an essential prerequisite in achieving sustainable forest management (SFM). A broad array of regional, national and global initiatives has emerged, particularly in the last decade. These initiatives comprise a diverse mix of public, private and NGO efforts to support policy development, implementation and knowledge and capacity building.

The document Enhancing the trade of legally produced timber published by Tropenbos International with support of the Netherlands ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation, is a guide to the major initiatives that promote the legal production and trade of timber. The 127 initiatives described in this document are classified according to four categories: a) government-based; b) private sector; c) NGOs; and d) knowledge and capacity building initiatives.

The document consists of four different parts:

• Part 1: Introduction outlines the background, objectives, scope and structure of the document.
• Part 2: General overview and observations provides insight to and understanding of the array of initiatives (their type, focus and geographical coverage). It facilitates discussion of the main developments, gaps and opportunities and the key issues to reflect on in the way forward.
• Part 3 provides a short summary of the initiatives and briefly describes the different categories of initiatives.
• Annex 1: lists and systematically describes the 127 initiatives in more detail (Annex 1 is compiled on a CD provided with this document).

The initiatives in this guide illustrate the global scope and dimensions of the problem and the nature and diversity of responses that have emerged at the various policy levels and in the private and NGO sectors. The guide also shows how these initiatives relate to each other. The range of initiatives reflects the increasing commitment from a large variety of stakeholders who are willing to address illegality in the forest sector — substantial momentum has been created. Still, some countries and regions either have limited or no initiatives.