1. The 3rd meeting of the Ad Hoc Joint Task Force (JTF) on the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) between the EU, Indonesia and Malaysia was convened on 12 September 2024 in Brussels. The organisation of the meeting was facilitated by the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) on Indonesia and Malaysia’s side. The meeting began with the opening remarks by Dr. Florika Fink-Hooijer, the European Commission’s Director General for Environment, followed by Co-Chairs of Ad Hoc JTF, Dr. Musdhalifah Machmud (Indonesia, Senior Advisor for Connectivity, Service Sector, and Natural Resources and Dato’ Yusran Shah Bin Mohd Yusof (Malaysia, Secretary General, Ministry of Plantation and Commodities). More than 80 stakeholders participated in person and online, comprised of representatives from the governments of Indonesia and Malaysia, European Commission, the private sector, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), smallholders and academia.

2. In the meeting, the progress and status of all five workstreams were presented by Malaysia, Indonesia and the EU. The EU reaffirmed its commitment to work closely with Indonesia and Malaysia to enhance deforestation-free efforts, according to internationally agreed definitions by each respective countries legal and traceable supply chains and to support smallholders’ inclusion in supply chains mechanism in commodity sectors covered by the EUDR.

3. The EU, Indonesia, and Malaysia will work together towards recommendations and a practical guide provided by the respective national traceability tool for smallholders and SMEs in the palm oil, coffee, rubber, timber, and cocoa sector to prepare them for the EUDR to be available by November 2024.

4. The EU and Malaysia committed to organise an EUDR Module for Training of Trainers in November 2024 in cooperation with Malaysian stakeholders, as well as a Focus Groups Discussion Event for timber and rubber sector end of September in Malaysia.

5. Parties also agreed to the organisation of cross-commodity and private sector dialogues in Indonesia and Malaysia before the entry into application of the EUDR.

6. Indonesia and Malaysia reiterated concerns that without the clear implementing guideline issued on time, the EU market will become uncertain. Therefore, Indonesia and Malaysia urged the EU to provide practical information about the regulation as the entry into application is approaching.

7. The EU shared concerns on a possible legal prohibition in Malaysia and Indonesia to collect geolocation, a key requirement for operators under the EUDR. Indonesia and Malaysia highlighted that the data required by the EUDR are protected by the privacy and security laws of Indonesia and Malaysia.

8. The EU commended efforts by Indonesia and Malaysia to enhance traceability and transparency of supply chains of sustainable commodities with Indonesian National Dashboard Initiative as well as Malaysia’s traceability tools such as Sawit Intelligent Management System (SIMS), GeoPalm Portal, and MSPO Trace. The EU welcomed all the efforts to date including the comprehensive sustainability approach towards certification beyond traceability and highlighted the useful role of national certification such as Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) and Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) certification schemes as a supporting tool for operators and traders.

9. Indonesia and Malaysia shared their views on the importance on strengthening existing national traceability schemes in the two countries. The EU reiterated its support to help Indonesia and Malaysia to strengthen existing national traceability.

10. . The EU reiterated its commitment to continue consultative meetings with Indonesia and Malaysia on forest cover maps, with a view of supporting Indonesia and Malaysia to enhance available scientific data using multilaterally agreed definitions. The EU reiterated that the EU Forest Observatory map is a legally non-binding, non-mandatory supporting tool for operators to conduct due diligence. Indonesia and Malaysia emphasised that the role national authority-based forest map is crucial in providing both legal and sustainable information, and in the pursuit of accurate and scientific data.

11. All parties agreed to continue the discussions at technical level on specific issues under the Joint Task Force workstreams.

12. The Ad Hoc Joint Task Force is a consultative mechanism to support technical coordination and dialogue on the EUDR between the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, the Ministry of Plantation and Commodities of Malaysia and the European Commission. It intends to address concerns raised by Indonesia and Malaysia pertaining to the implementation of the EUDR and thus, identifying solutions and best practices relevant for the implementation of the EUDR. In doing so, the Participants intend to acknowledge their respective efforts towards the achievement of the SDGs by 2030 as well as joint international commitments on climate and biodiversity.