Indonesia, Malaysia, And The European Union Agree To Form A Task Force For The Implementation Of Deforestation Regulations

Members of the Community Care for Restoration (MPR). (DOC. ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Indonesia, Malaysia and the European Union have agreed to establish the Ad Hoc Joint Task Force (JTF) to discuss EU deforestation regulations (EUDR), after the first meeting of the three was held in Jakarta on Friday, August 4.

The meeting was chaired by the Deputy for Food and Agribusiness Coordination of the Coordinating Ministry for the Economy, Musdhalifah Machmud, Secretary General of the Ministry of Plantation and Commodities of Malaysia, Dato Mad Zaidi bin Mohd Karli, and Director of Green Diplomacy and Multilateralism of the European Commission, Astrid Schomaker.

The three countries have reached an agreement aimed at advancing the common interest between producing countries and consumers of plantation and forestry products, as stated in a press statement issued by representatives of the European Union in Jakarta on Saturday.

"JTF Ad Hoc will work together to overcome the concerns expressed by Indonesia and Malaysia regarding the implementation of the EUDR, as well as to find relevant practical solutions and approaches to the implementation of the EUDR," said a representative from the European Union, reported by ANTARA, Saturday, August 5.

This task force will establish relevant dialogue and work mechanisms, which will be led by each government to expand understanding of the implementation of regulations and their core aspects, including comparison.

Musdhalifah emphasized that the meeting was held to achieve a common understanding, while Mad Zaidi stated that cooperation must be carried out for the best cross-sectoral solution.

Schomaker said Indonesia and Malaysia had made progress in reducing deforestation and welcomed the sharing of information and clarification about the regulation.

The three parties also agreed on a reference framework for JTF Ad Hoc, which includes work on issues such as farmer inclusiveness in supply chains, relevant national certification schemes (land legalities and deforestation deadlines), tracing from producers to final consumers, scientific data on deforestation and degraded forests, and data protection.

JTF Ad Hoc will complete its duties by the end of 2024 and possibly be extended based on a mutual agreement.

The European Commission previously implemented an EUDR policy requiring each exporter to verify to ensure its products do not come from deforestation activities.

The export products targeted by EUDR are palm oil and its derivative products, charcoal, cocoa, coffee, soybeans, beef, wood, rubber, paper, and skin.

This rule aims to ensure consumption and trade in these products do not help encourage deforestation and ecosystem destruction. If a violation is found, exporters are subject to a maximum fine of 4 percent of the revenue earned by the European Union.

Indonesia protested the EUDR policy which was considered very discriminatory because it would affect the trade in Indonesian products that were widely exported to the European Union, such as coffee, palm oil, pepper, chocolate, and rubber.