Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – 7 May 2025 — Per-Olof Sjöö, President of the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI), delivered a rousing keynote address at the PEFC Forest Forum 25+ today, urging stakeholders to place people, planet, and inclusive prosperity at the heart of forest governance. Speaking before forest workers and experts, industry leaders, and civil society groups, Sjöö underscored the urgency of expanding Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) and tackling the widespread informality and exploitation in the forest sector, especially in tropical regions and native forests.

Citing ILO data, Sjöö noted that over 80 percent of forest-related employment in Latin America, Africa, and Asia remains informal, leaving workers—particularly women, youth, and migrants—vulnerable to dangerous conditions, forced labour, and abuse. “Forests are not just trees. They are ecosystems intertwined with millions of human lives,” he stressed, advocating for stronger occupational safety standards, decent work, and formalised labour protections across the entire forestry supply chain.

One of the core messages of Sjöö’s speech was a call for the PEFC to close the certification gap in tropical and native forests, which remain severely underrepresented in sustainability standards. “These regions are biodiversity treasures and home to indigenous communities. Ignoring them undermines both environmental and social justice,” he warned, urging the Forum to develop tailored certification strategies that prioritise inclusion, transparency, and worker empowerment.

Prior to the PEFC 25+ Forum, Sjöö met with the leaders of the Vietnam Forest Corporation Union (VFCU), the BWI-affiliated trade union organisation led by its President, Sis. Tran Thuy Nguyet, and visited plantation forests managed by the La Nga Forestry Company Limited.

Sjöö concluded with a rallying call ahead of COP30 in Brazil, reminding the audience that climate action must not sideline the voices of forest workers and indigenous peoples. “There is no environmental justice without workers’ rights,” he declared. “Exploited workers and rainforest destruction go hand in hand, and neither can be part of a sustainable future.”