Policy Coherence for Development in the EU’s Multidimensional Toolbox Against Deforestation: Unilateral, Bilateral and Multilateral Efforts

Summary

The EU is committed to promoting values like environmental protection across all its policies, as mandated by its treaties. This study explores the EU’s comprehensive approach to combating deforestation through its multidimensional strategies, encompassing unilateral, bilateral, and multilateral efforts. At the unilateral level, it examines the EU Deforestation Regulation; bilaterally, it investigates forest management clauses in the Trade and Sustainable Development chapters of EU Free Trade Agreements; and multilaterally, it assesses the EU’s engagement in organizations and negotiations at multilateral fora.

The study aims to establish how the EU integrates the principle of policy coherence for development (PCD), as stipulated in TFEU article 208, ensuring that its policies both support development objectives and minimize policy contradictions, especially in developing countries. By mapping and analysing these efforts, the study seeks to assess the EU’s policy coherence, particularly concerning its regulatory, trade, and environmental strategies to address deforestation. This includes a discussion of the Better Regulation Package and its relevance to key sustainability agendas, such as the 2030 Agenda, to provide a thorough view of the EU’s actions in this domain.