BLOOD TIMBER

Between April 2013 and January 2014, logging companies in the Central African Republic (CAR) paid an estimated EUR 3.4 million to the Seleka rebel coalition for 'protection' and to pass checkpoints, effectively funding a regime responsible for mass human rights abuses. Following the Seleka's fall, companies continued to pay an estimated EUR 127,864 to anti-balaka militias in 2014. The report identifies SEFCA, IFB, and the Vicwood Group as primary actors who maintained operations through these payments. It argues that the EU and France failed to enforce the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) and that the EU's Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) with CAR is flawed as it attempts to legitimise an industry operating in a failed state. The document recommends a moratorium on industrial logging and the establishment of a Forest Sector Review Committee, drawing parallels to post-war reconstruction in Liberia.

• Industrial logging companies paid an estimated EUR 3.4 million to the Seleka rebel coalition between April 2013 and January 2014 to maintain operations, including payments for 'protection' and illegal taxes at checkpoints.
• Following the Seleka's rule, logging companies paid an estimated EUR 127,864 to anti-balaka militias in 2014 to operate in the forested South-West of CAR.
• Three main companies—SEFCA, IFB, and the Vicwood Group—dominated the sector in 2013, with SEFCA alone accounting for 62% of total production.
• SEFCA provided a direct cash 'advance' of CFA 250 million (approximately EUR 380,876) to the Seleka government in May 2013, despite the regime's commission of human rights violations.
• The logging industry in CAR is characterized by systemic illegality, including the failure of companies to respect forest management plans and the widespread under-reporting of felling volumes.
• Logging companies consistently breached CAR law requiring them to process 70% of main timber species; in 2013, companies processed only 9.4% of total wood harvested.
• The European Union failed to enforce the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) against importers of CAR timber, and the EU's Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) is deemed inappropriate for a failed state.
• France and the French Development Agency (AFD) provided financial and technical support to CAR's logging sector, which the report argues perpetuated the impunity of companies funding the conflict.
• The report argues that timber from CAR traded between April 2013 and January 2014 should be classified as 'conflict timber' because it funded serious human rights violations.
• The allocation of new logging permits in 2013 and 2014 was marked by illegalities, including the failure to consult indigenous populations and suspicions of bribery.

APA

Global Witness (2015). BLOOD TIMBER. https://gw.cdn.ngo/media/documents/BLOOD_TIMBER_web.pdf

Chicago

Global Witness. BLOOD TIMBER. 2015. https://gw.cdn.ngo/media/documents/BLOOD_TIMBER_web.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Global Witness |title=BLOOD TIMBER |date=July 2015 |url=https://gw.cdn.ngo/media/documents/BLOOD_TIMBER_web.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{globalwitness2015blood, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{BLOOD TIMBER}}, institution = {Global Witness}, year = {2015}, month = jul, url = {https://gw.cdn.ngo/media/documents/BLOOD_TIMBER_web.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }