International Tropical Timber Organization
The International Tropical Timber Organization ( ITTO for short ; English for International Organization for Tropical Timber ) is an international organization that advocates the conservation and sustainable use of tropical rainforests .
history
ITTO was based on the International Tropical Timber Agreement negotiated in Geneva on November 18, 1983 under the auspices of the World Trade and Development Conference , which came into force in 1987. It was replaced in 1997 by a new Convention of January 26, 1994; yet another new convention of January 27, 2006 is still in the ratification phase . The organization is based in Yokohama ( Japan ), where a 35-member secretariat implements the current convention; In addition, she sends regional representatives to Latin America and Africa .
As usual in international raw material organizations, both producer and buyer countries are represented in the ITTO; the latter also include Germany , Austria and Switzerland . Its members represent around 80% of the world's rainforests and 70% of the world's trade in corresponding woods.
Since its inception, the organization has funded more than 800 projects with a volume of over US $ 300 million . The money for this is given to the ITTO on a voluntary basis - for the most part by the governments of Japan, Switzerland , the United States and the Netherlands, and the European Union .